The holidays have been extremely difficult for our
family. I expected it to be tough,
but I didn’t expect the pain of missing Hudson to take my breath away like it
did right after his death. There
are days that I feel like I’m drowning, but thankfully the majority of days I
feel God’s peace.
I wonder what its like in Heaven at Christmas. I imagine Hudson joining in singing
with a beautiful heavenly choir to celebrate our Savior’s birthday. I’m sure joy radiates from Heaven all
of the time, but I imagine it is extra special at Christmas. What an incredible gift for a king to
leave his perfect kingdom to come to a broken and hurting world and die for the
sins of all of humanity. I think about
how much I miss Hudson and wish he was here with me, and when I step back from
that it makes me think about how Jesus must hurt so much when we are distant
from him. He so desperately wants
to be in our lives. I’m in awe of
the love that Jesus has for us, and I’m glad Hudson is experiencing that directly. Christmas really is about God’s ultimate
gift of love in the form of a baby boy.
I’m glad my son is in the arms of his son.
Even though there has been a lot of tragedy in the past
year, there are so many things I am thankful for and I wanted to share them
with you.
·
Jesus Christ for conquering death and pain in
this world and providing a way for me to spend eternity with my creator and
loved ones.
·
My incredible husband & Hudson’s amazing
Dada. I’m not sure how I could
have done it without you. You are
my perfect match.
·
Our family for supporting us throughout our
entire journey with Hudson and especially lately for being so respectful of
changing holiday traditions to make it a little easier on us.
·
Incredible friends that have prayed, called,
messaged, sent cards and flowers and gifts. I am thankful for having people in my life that didn’t
abandon us when things were ugly, uncomfortable, and awkward. You have held our hands and wiped our
tears, let us talk about Hudson and continue to remember our precious son. I’m thankful that my friends haven’t
given up on me when I probably only respond to their calls and messages less
than half of the time.
·
Hudson’s entire medical team. You inspire me and are changing lives
on a daily basis. Thank you for
giving me the best 23 months of my life.
·
Our church for the amazing support they have
offered us. I’m also so
appreciative of the way they took charge of Hudson’s memorial service and made
it more special than I could have ever hoped for.
·
Our work families for supporting us and allowing
Hudson to take first priority over work obligations.
·
I am so blown away and thankful for everyone
that participated in the first annual Hudson’s Day of Kindness on June 25th. Thank you for helping me tell my son’s
story and keep his memory alive. I
hope you will continue this tradition with us every year.
·
Thank you to everyone that has donated to
Children’s of Alabama in Hudson’s memory.
This memorial fund will remain open indefinitely and every time someone
specifies the name Hudson Simmons, 100% of the proceeds will go to life-saving
research for other children affected by congenital heart defects and heart
problems. To date we have raised
over $9,000 to change the lives of heart families at Children’s of Alabama and
hopefully around the world. Thank
you for caring about something that we are so passionate about.
·
Last but certainly not least is my son,
Hudson. Thank you for making me a
mother. I love you with a
fierceness that I didn’t realize existed.
You made me better, more compassionate, more aware, more loving. You are my greatest accomplishment and
the very best part of me. I can’t
wait until the day that we are running into each other’s arms again. I love you forever Hudson. Merry Christmas my sweet love!
 |
| Hudson's 1st Christmas - 6 months old |
