Our mortality

It is, perhaps, fitting to write on our mortality here on what is a national day of mourning (for the passing of former president Gerald Ford). This, however, is not the reason that I have been thinking about this topic. Last night, after 20 weeks in the hospital, my Dad’s older sister (my Aunt Carolyn) passed away. I didn’t know her well, and hadn’t seen her in about 10 years, since she lived on the opposite side of the country from us. But, I had been praying for her, and prayed that her passing would be quick and peaceful.

I am not really sure what I have to say on this topic, honestly. Thus far in my life, I have been pretty lucky to have been spared from having to deal with too many losses of family or friends. It wasn’t until I was 16 years old that I had a close family member pass away — my paternal grandfather. And, while it can believe it has been a while ago that that happened, it does not feel like it could possibly have been almost 14 years ago. I can still remember vividly going to visit him and the way that he would always hit you in arm as a greeting, sometimes maybe a little more firmly than I wanted, but it was his way, and it didn’t actually hurt. He would always be sitting at the kitchen table, watching his TV programs. Thinking of that kitchen makes me think of him. And, perhaps it is a blessing that my grandparents moved into a retirement complex before he passed so that we wouldn’t have to be in that kitchen and know he wasn’t there.

I think that deep down, even when we worry about death, we don’t think that it will happen to us now. It is something far in the future. But, then you have the experience, as I did in my second year of college, of hearing that a girl who I had been on the newspaper with in high school (who was still in high school at that time), had been having headaches. Her family found out it was because of a tumor. And, then within three weeks, she was gone. It is in instances like that that we see that life is not quite as certain as we expect it to be.

God has His plan for us, and it does not always follow the plans that we have for ourselves. And, I think that can be difficult to remember sometimes. Perhaps these are events that happen in our lives that serve as reminders to us to embrace every moment, and to take this time now to do what we can for others and to try to more closely follow the path that God has laid out for us.

No related posts.