Gretchen, that is so sad. I am so sorry. May the Lord comfort you.
Thank you, tommix2. I do feel the good Lord has more to do in restoring this sundered family. I just wrote in a FRmail to Starwise that my father suffered at least as much from this as we did. We can't reclaim those years, but God can, and will, "restore the years the locust has eaten."
I've always marveled at how easily I have been able to relate to God as my Father, despite this.