Reflections From Two Days in April

There were tears, of course. Lots of memories shared, at the funeral home, at the grave site, at lunch afterward. One of the comments made about Grandma was that she made each of her grandchildren feel as if they were the most special one. It was true. How did she do that?

There was lots of time sitting around going through old photos, laughing at hair styles and outfits in years past, smiling at Grandma's antics with her friends when they were all 17. Was she really 17 once?

A flowering tree was planted in Grandma's honor. Thank-you notes were written to all the lovely people who brought food for our crowd. My mom, sister, cousins, aunts and I lovingly fingered Grandma's many bracelets and each chose one we would wear to remember her.

There was silliness in many forms, including all of us trying on Grandma's old plastic rain hats for the camera... so good to laugh with these people who we may not see nearly often enough, but whom we are forever linked by our love for the one who's life we'd gathered to celebrate.

It wasn't her in that coffin. The shell that rested there had familiar looking hands, and wore the bracelet with the grandchildren's names on it. The dress had been worn at a grandchild's wedding. But our Grandma was gone. Gone from the body and present with Jesus. She got there in time to have the ultimate Easter celebration, as my cousin Ruth noted.

The two hour drive to the cemetery was so beautiful. Grandma had been saying for a while that she hoped for a pretty day for us to make that drive, and I'm certain God chose this one on purpose. The red bud trees in bloom contrasted with the green lace of all the new leaves on the other trees on the rolling hills was stunning against the blue sky.

After the cemetery and lunch, we drove to Kaskaskia Island to see her childhood home. Still standing, that white brick house was once flooded up to the sills of the second story windows by the mighty Mississippi. The current owner of the house graciously allowed us to pose for photos in the yard. Amazing to get to do that and within hours be looking at tiny old black and white photos with that same home in the background.

Now I'm back in China and it's all over. I've relived the conversations and memories we all shared, rolling them over and over in my mind. We're back to our daily lives, but we are all changed a little from our precious days together.

Thank you, Grandma, for bringing us all together again. We love you.