Denny was a boy my age who lived down the street from us and who came to play on our swings and our sandbox. I looked forward to his visits until they became less and less frequent, and I saw him in my brother’s room talking about his comics. A long time later I asked my mother why Denny never came over to play any more. Her answer was, “He discovered your brother.”

My brother Burr was four years older than I , and my mother’s answer made perfect sense. I would rather have played with Burr than with just about anyone else; but he, the big brother to four sisters, was a being almost unapproachable to a younger sister.

Burr had one weakness that gained us access to his world. He loved to have his back scratched, and would actually pay his sisters, either with some of his allowance, or with a look at one of his comic books, to scratch his back. We got bored at this, but there were three of us at first, before our youngest was born: a good supply.

When Burr went away to college he began to use his real name, Richard Burdett, and called himself Dick. It took us girls a while to get used to it, but eventually some of us called him “Burr”, and some, “Dick”. Dick was always kind to us. Only once, when he was 8 or 9, he waved an angle worm at me and said, “here!” When he grew up, he was a faithful church goer, and a faithful brother who always showed up when one of us needed him. He helped me move to my own first apartment, and begged me to choose one on the ground floor “next time.”

His faith went underground for several years, but he never tired of talking about what was real to him. Most of all, Dick and his wife Nancy opened their home to friends and acquaintances of all stripes. They became the center of a fluid group who loved to convene at their home. I was one of those who loved to visit them.

Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever you have received to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace in various forms. (1 Peter4:9-10) Dick and Nancy lived this principal every day. He went home to the Lord on Thanksgiving Day in 2019, and those who loved him know that it couldn’t have been more appropriate, for we were all grateful to have had him in our lives.

Love in Him,

Prue