Entwined 'Round Our Hearts
by Clarence and Karyn Meekis
The panic started rising in her throat because she knew that her "everyday hell" was about to begin. Her brothers would be sent to school and, at the age of five, she would be locked out of the house, alone till the foster parents let her in again in the evening. She was left to fend for herself on the streets of the city, awakening from naps on the sidewalks with people not even noticing her, walking all around her. Sitting up on the street curb, she’d anxiously await her brothers’ return. She wasn’t afraid of being alone, just of what was waiting for them back at the house…
The young boy, awakened by his father, was terrified by the nightmare he had just experienced. Something was out to get him, and whatever ‘it’ was, the boy’s father had just saved him. His father held him for a long time, but the boy kept crying, convinced that ‘it’ was still going to get his brothers. The little boy begged his father to allow him to wake his brothers so they could be warned about ‘it’. After warning his brothers, the boy returned to his father’s arms for comfort. Even in the middle of the night following a silly nightmare, simply knowing his parents were there and cared for him, was more than enough to settle any worry the young boy had…
Both of these stories are true, and experiences like these are part of what has shaped us into who we are today. "Parenting" is a word worth a thousand pictures and yet we as parents could define it differently every day. Welcoming a child into this world is a miracle in itself and a blessing to the Creator Himself who created all things. Yet another miracle is taking place at the same time—when a child is born, two parents are born as well. A mother and a father are born, regardless of our choices to participate any further in this child’s life. But this child and every child will hold a special place reserved in God’s heart for eternity!
We were recently asked if we would consider sharing some of our experiences and the lessons we have learned in our family adventure. We’d like to start off by introducing ourselves and sharing a bit about of our family history.
Our family includes three wonderful children, 2 sons and a daughter. They are named Clarence Indio (8), David Skye (4), and Rayne Grace (2) along with us, the parents, Karyn Elizabeth and Clarence Cello Meekis. Clarence is Oji-Cree and a member of Deer Lake First Nation in Northwestern Ontario. Karyn is Native American and belongs to the Kiowa Tribe of Oklahoma.
Our experiences as parents are shaped by the ways in which we grew up—vastly different to say the least! Clarence grew up in a stable Christian home with parents who have committed the greater part of their lives to ministry, showing God’s love to their own First Nations people in northern Ontario. Karyn was given up by her birth parents at age 3, along with her brothers, and put into many different foster homes in southern California and Oregon before settling into a Christian family environment at age 10. God has indeed had His hand on our lives and continues to show us His grace and mercy as we raise our family in an ever-changing world. Our desire is that together with our readers, we can learn and share the life experiences that have challenged us to be better parents for our children.
