Funerals and Birthday Parties
Media vita in morte sumus, that's the line that's famous. In the midst of life we are in death.
But a week and a half ago, I felt more the opposite tension of that. In the midst of death, we are in life. That Tuesday came the terrible, unexpected news of Nick's death, and the funeral was Friday morning.
On Saturday afternoon, I was at a birthday party for an almost five year old. To tell the truth, I felt not much, mostly numb, still in shock, still too overloaded with unprocessed emotions to have really noticed or cared that it was raining as I walked across town or that the flowers were blooming all over the place in profuse beauty.
And still --
Still I was glad to be there. Glad to be with people who were celebrating life, after a week that was full of mourning with people grieving death. Glad for the bright cheer of little kids who babble with each other in gibberish and burst out laughing over nothing at all. Who hand out hugs without a second thought.
I was so thankful for the birthday girl's wish after she blew out her candles and pondered for a moment about what to wish for. I hope we can all be friends for forever.
But a week and a half ago, I felt more the opposite tension of that. In the midst of death, we are in life. That Tuesday came the terrible, unexpected news of Nick's death, and the funeral was Friday morning.
On Saturday afternoon, I was at a birthday party for an almost five year old. To tell the truth, I felt not much, mostly numb, still in shock, still too overloaded with unprocessed emotions to have really noticed or cared that it was raining as I walked across town or that the flowers were blooming all over the place in profuse beauty.
And still --
Still I was glad to be there. Glad to be with people who were celebrating life, after a week that was full of mourning with people grieving death. Glad for the bright cheer of little kids who babble with each other in gibberish and burst out laughing over nothing at all. Who hand out hugs without a second thought.
I was so thankful for the birthday girl's wish after she blew out her candles and pondered for a moment about what to wish for. I hope we can all be friends for forever.
Thanks be to God that though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He is with us. And in the midst of death, there is Life.
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