"There are too many Carpenters in Heaven"

I overheard Parks saying this sentence to himself last week after he talked with Lily Kate about loosing some of our family. I know he was thinking also of his dad. Even as I'm typing I know that "loosing" isn' the right word and Heaven is a far better place for us Carpenters to be than here. I know those things are true. Still, there is so much pain. Last week our sweet niece, Gwenyth, and Parks' wonderful sister Marie went to Heaven on the same day. Most of you have known about and have prayed for Gwen through me or through her blog link here on our blog. Marie was at Falling Water, a lookout that she loved, when she fell Friday. Marie & Gwen were both daughters, both sisters, both cousins, both nieces. So many people love these two and feel such an emptiness at their absence. I have waited to write, hoping that eloquent words would show up sometime. I have concluded that they aren't coming. We feel heavy, broken, & sad. We also feel God's nearness and comfort. I have enjoyed looking through old pictures of Marie. She was really beautiful, she was really silly, she is really special. We love her so.