Sometimes a story is obviously redemptive; sometimes it is not and leads us to trusting God in the dark, silent places. This one is in the latter category. We have now had a friend run in two Boston Marathons (about which we know, anyway). Our friend Doug Brown ran in it ten years ago. His wife was my boss in Germany. Like us and like the Helfrich family (yesterday's marathon), there was a family member with autism. Doug and Elena's daughter Carmina was totally non-verbal and profoundly non-functional. Elena was and is the best boss I ever had. In Germany, she hosted one of my wedding showers at her house. When we were due to transfer back to the States and Gulf War I was looming, she let me go on schedule because Noel had to get to the States before his entry visa expired. She put herself on the watchbill in my place for three months, till my relief got there, and did double duty as the boss and as a watchstander. With a war coming on. So her husband, also a naval officer, ran the Marathon ten years ago. That was the year the bomb exploded. Doug had just finished and was safely away from that area. Unfortunately, his brain broke, as things sometimes happen. He got intense survivor's guilt and ran two to three more marathons in the next two years, all over the world. Then came Christmas 2015 when Joey called me one morning just as I was getting to work and told me Doug had just killed his family and himself. The Browns had a plan for Carmina's lifetime--they had bought a rest home for her and some friends and had arranged lifetime care there. I even later found an email from Doug to Elena, forwarded to me, about using Navy retirement benefits for disabled kids. It was from one month before their death. Doug had not intended to kill Carmina! Elena was, I believe, one of those "saved Catholics" (however that works). We had many conversations about the Lord over the years and I believe she was the real thing. Doug had been an agnostic but had started forwarding me articles about God. I do not know, in his broken state, how he died. I am sure Jesus wrapped sweet Carmina in His arms as soon as she passed over. Now, having knowledge of this story, Anne Helfrich told me two days ago that the Browns were now part of their family and Charlie would run in their memory, too. Amazing grace of God to keep alive the memory of those we have loved and tried to influence for Him. All of the above is still incomprehensible to me, and totally humbling.