Ascension : News From the Grotto - 3rd Week of Lent
Submitted by The Islander (Shari Parkhill) 19.03.2009 (Article Archived on 02.04.2009)

On Saturday I was, as usual, at the museum. I was going through some files on the computer and came across a wonderful letter from a lady who arrived on Ascension many years ago when she was just a baby.

 She was born in 1919, the same year as my father.  She spent 10 years here.  Her father had been posted here.  She pointed out what an adventure it was for him to pack up his family and bring them to such a remote outpost.  She has wonderful memories of growing up on Ascension.

Back in those days, the island was so much more remote than it is now.  We feel the distance from our families these days, and all we have to do is pick up the telephone and hear them on the line, or email them on the computer.  Skype allows us to even see them while we talk to them!

Back then, other than the rare expensive cable, everyone had to rely on letters.  The news you wrote to your loved ones would be old before the letter ever reached them.  You would have to wait for a boat to arrive to pick up the mail, and then who knows how long it would take to reach its destination.   I can’t imagine finding out months after the fact about a birth in the family, or even worse, a death.

When this lady arrived as a baby, she was terribly ill from whooping cough.  The hospital was poorly supplied, and her mother had to resort to old remedies, which, she liked to point out since at the time she was writing this letter, she was a hale and hearty eighty-five year old, obviously worked.  Others were not so lucky.  All one has to do is wander around the old Georgetown or Monkey Rock Cemetery and see all the tiny graves to realize how difficult and tragic life could be for those who left the safety of their homelands for this little piece of rock miles from anywhere.

So, as we continue our journey through Lent, let us remember the trials and tribulations of those who came before us, not only here on Ascension, but in our many homelands.  Life is so much more convenient these days, but as recent events in my family have proven, can still be as difficult.  Tragedy still stalks us, and can strike in a moment, and alter our lives forever.

Let us remember that God walks with us every step of the way, and be grateful for His help in navigating this life.  Let us remember Him in the good times as well as the bad.  So many times we forget Him when our lives are happy, and we are content.  Then, when difficulties arise, we call on Him and hope that He will remember us.  The good news is that He always remembers us, even if we ignore Him for a while.

In this season of Lent, when we reaffirm our faith, take a few moments every day to have a little conversation with God.  Thank Him for the blessings in our lives, ask for His guidance in choosing the right path, and accept His help when the dark hours arrive.  With His help I know that my family will survive these darkest of hours.  He will be there for you and yours as well.   All you have to do is ask.

May God bless us all in this Lenten season.  May our faith be renewed, our hearts comforted, and our souls reassured.