My mom was cherished by my big brother Mark.  He used to say that Pam Metherell might be small, but boy is she mighty (and practically perfect in everyway)!  My mom in turn cherished her only son with that all encompassing almost painful love that you only know once you become a parent.  Some of my fondest memories of my big brother was watching him grab mom in the kitchen early in morning while she was still in her long, pink flannel nightgown and he inevitably was in his khaki shorts and holey surf t-shirt and spin her around the floor like they were at the wildest ball ever.  Then with his crooked eyebrow raised - and that ever present twinkle in his eye he would ask me for the honor of a dance and then my sister and if we were really lucky - even my dad.  My mom loves Mark so much that when she realized he was intent on joining the seal teams, she stopped trying to convince him otherwise and wholeheartedly supported him - even when behind her cool demeanor I know her heart was fearful.  I remember she even drove down to Coronado to pick Mark up after he had completed Hell Week and when I say “picked Mark up”, I mean it literally.  He was in congestive heart failure, after a week of little to no sleep and constant training he wasn’t able to walk by himself and she had to almost carry him into the car.  She took him home, ran a bath for him so he could actually get his clothes off of his body and took care of him like she had done so many times before.  She loves her boy and he truly loved his mom.

In the last week we have been hearing about how so many people wanted to be like Mark Metherell when they grew up but whenever I hear that I can’t but help think that Mark Metherell wanted to be like Alex Metherell when he grew up.  You see our dad made the decision a long time ago that no child of his was going to live in a home like he had lived in.  Dad grew up in household filled with a lot of heartache, but he made the decision early that he was going to love and serve his wife and his children.  Take one glance at my big brother and you will know that he has followed dad’s lead and made the same choice.  If you talk with my dad about Mark you can’t but help to see the incredible pride he has for his son it almost oozes out of his eyes and is evident in the smile that comes to his lips when he says his son’s name.  Whenever Mark talked about Cora he had that same pride oozing from his eyes and that same smile on his lips whenever he said his daughter’s name.  I remember Sarah saying this last Christmas that she couldn’t believe how much alike Mark and his dad where becoming.  I am not sure who felt more complemented by her comment Mark or my dad.  Thank you mom and dad for raising Mark intentionally the way you did and for allowing Mark to become the man that God wanted him to be.

I remember once on a family vacation in Hawaii sitting at night on the shoreline with my mom and dad watching Mark and a friend prepare to go night diving.  He had his wet suit on and he cracked one of those glow sticks usually reserved for Halloween and attach it to his mask.  He then without hesitation jumped in the water and was off.  We sat on the banks for a really long time and watched as his light got further and further away.  Mom and dad started to get a little nervous but I was oddly comforted by his light knowing that if I could see his light I knew he was still OK. 

Well, big brother I still can see your light whenever I see the look of love mom has in her eyes when she looks at a picture of you or when I see the look of pride on dad’s face when he is telling a story of all your bravery or when I hear a story about one of the countless ways you made your friends laugh or when I see Sarah loving care for your sweet Cora – it is then that I know you are OK.  Even though it is excruciatingly painful to re-imagine my life without you in it and maybe there won’t be any more dances around the kitchen floor or crushing bear hugs in which I wonder if you are ever going to let me go - I know you will be the first one in line to greet me when it is my turn to meet my Jesus face to face.  We promise to tell your stories to Cora as she grows so that she knows just what a truly incredible, kind and brave man her daddy was.  We promise to hold Sarah in our arms when we know her heart is bursting from missing you.  We promise to spin our moms around the kitchen floor and spend time deep in conversation with our dads.  We promise never to forget you and the many ways in which you have touched our lives.  But most importantly we promise to live our lives completely true to who we are and in a way that would bring glory and honor to our Lord Jesus Christ.  Mark you were my hero long before you joined the service and you forever will be my hero not because of what you did during your life but because of who you became.  We will miss you, big brother.

Love you!
Monster