Normally, I am asleep by the time my head hits the pillow. Last night, I found myself lost in thought as I replayed a telephone conversation with my younger brother inside my head. We visited by phone earlier in the day.
Of course, the topic had never crossed our minds before six weeks ago. It has to do with the celebration of life service for our brother scheduled for February 3, 2024, at the Lake Travis United Methodist Church in Lakeway. We both see it as a Christmas miracle.
This past Christmas was the first Christmas in 51 years that the unspoken sense of loss associated with our brother's MIA status didn't weigh heavily on our minds. This Christmas, we knew with certainty that Ron has been with the Lord all this time. The thing about ambiguous grief is that without certainty, you cannot fully find closure.
I favor celebration of life services where there are multiple speakers that briefly share a snapshot of the range of influence and the impact a loved one's life contributed to things of value in your own. Karoni, Ron's daughter, favors those kinds of experiences as well. She has well thought out plans for the celebration of life program, and I know her dad will be honored in the process.
As a family, we don't need a typical funeral message with three points and a poem. Over the past 51 years, we've been aware of God meeting us at the point of need despite the lack of information and certainty around Ronnie's loss.
Larry shared with me last night that he has narrowed down information about Ronnie that he plans to share. He thinks he can express it all in ten minutes. I have every confidence that his presentation will be loving, thoughtful, informative, well thought out and of interest to all present for the service.
I, too, have things I want to share, but I've not yet scripted the presentation. The two things I know with certainty is that I'll stay within the allotted time I've been given, and that my thoughts may not come completely together until several hours before I am to speak.
I'm excited about the celebration of life service. I envision that it will be one of those experiences where everyone in attendance will leave with the thought, I'm glad I came.
All My Best!
Don
No comments:
Post a Comment