9th October 2016

Today would have been (or, should we say, 'is') Matthew's 25th birthday.

'Would have been' seems appropriate in one way. In this sense. We wonder what 'would have' become of Matthew's life by now had he still been living. And when we think like this we feel sad and heavy hearted.

But 'is' seems appropriate in another way because, although temporarily absent from the body, Matthew is with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8) and this lifts our hearts and we can even rejoice that Matt's joy is so great right at this moment.

So today we are celebrating Matt's life, doing some things Matt enjoyed doing on his birthday, like having a hearty cooked breakfast.

We are also upholding some traditions we started on the first birthday after Matt's death, like letting go of a helium balloon and watching it until it's out of sight.

This morning we have received some very precious messages from old friends who knew Matthew and new friends who didn't.

One text came from a family who showed Matt special care and friendship for a couple of weeks in September 2011 before his brain tumour was diagnosed. That practical love and kindness was a huge blessing to Matt and we will always be grateful for that. This reminds us of an important lesson. We never know how much a relatively short life or how simple acts of kindness (Mark 9:41) can significantly impact another for good.