(The below is a recent testimonial from a mother who has recieved a Comfort basket)....
The Aaron Project Comfort Baskets: A True Source of Hope and Strength.
I’ve always considered myself a strong person; someone with real faults but with a real and strong faith, too. I’m certainly not the emotional type or ‘sentimental’ in any way. I generally don’t cry easily.
I can also share that I have lived through several ‘crosses’ or ‘tragedies’ as some people would call them. Somehow (by the grace of God I know) I came out of each ‘event’ a stronger person with what I thought was a stronger faith.
Then came that horrible morning in January of this year when my doctor told me the child I was carrying was dead. …Dead?
My child was DEAD?
At that moment I was no longer strong…I felt myself sinking into an abyss of darkness that even my strong faith couldn’t enlighten. Through the tears, I whispered to God that I wanted His will to be done…that I knew I would see my child again in Heaven.
But the pain of the loss was so excruciating…so deep and penetrating. The ‘crosses’ I had lived through and the subsequent pain they brought paled in comparison to the pain of losing my child.
Where was my faith? Where had my strength gone? The days passed and I found myself wandering around in a tearful daze…barely able to take care of my husband and two small children.
I needed help. I needed to lean on and learn from women who had gone through this experience. I needed to read the soothing words of others reassuring me that God did love me, that His plan in taking my child, although veiled in pain, would be extraordinarily fruitful.
Susan Hayward, a wonderful Mom I knew from our Mom’s Group was so kind and generous ~ she brought a Comfort Basket to my home and spoke with me about the loss of her son, Aaron, and how God had used that loss to bring about the wonderful apostolate known as the Aaron Project.
Once I opened the beautifully wrapped basket I knew I was going to find the help I needed. The books Susan included spoke to my soul and helped me begin the process of ‘grieving with faith’. The basket included so many thoughtful and helpful items ~ in particular there was a baby’s blanket ~ which I hold onto quite often, allowing the tears to flow.
I go through the books and items in the basket often. I need them. I need the strength they give me and the courage they provide.
The Comfort Baskets are so vitally important for women who have lost their children. I had no idea just how important until I lost my own child.
I ask anyone who hears my words to please consider finding out more about the Aaron Project and helping out as well. You will be helping a grieving mother find her way back to serenity and hope.
