Remembering

Today is a day I have been thinking about for several weeks. Last year the 4th of April fell on Easter Sunday. We celebrated like we did every Easter, church in the morning, then my son, and his family stopped over our house and the kids hunted for eggs in the yard. After everyone left we spent the rest of the day relaxing, getting ready for another work week.

The phone rang at 11:30 that night... nothing good comes from phone calls that you get that time of day. My mom was on the other end of the line, I will always remember the tone in her voice. I was confused, someone had died..she kept repeating the name, but it did not make any sense to me...who was she talking about?

My sister's husband had died...he hadn't been sick..he was young...no medical problems that we were aware of...but he was dead...his heart gave out.

The days that followed seemed sureal...my sister was now a widow with many responsibilities on her shoulders. I remember the bewilderment of the family, the pain etched in the faces of his parents...parents aren't meant to bury their children. A son, just beginning to learn what it means to be a man...now without his father.

These are the hard things of life...the things that make no sense this side of heaven. I still wonder why, I don't think there is anything wrong with asking God why. I think about them often...helpless to do much more than pray for them and send a note of encouragement from time to time. They say time heals...maybe...I think time dulls the pain but I don't think it takes it away completely.

 My advice, for what it's worth..if you know someone that has experienced death of a loved one, acknowledge their loss, especially on those special days (birthdays, date of death etc) Trust me, they are already thinking of that person on those days, you will not make them feel any worse.

My other advice...live each day as if it were you're last...don't leave things undone or unsaid, especially when it comes to relationships. You would have thought I would have learned that lesson after this event but no...it took breast cancer to finally drive that concept home...what can I say I'm a slow learner.

"You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you" Isaiah 26:3