For Wilshire Baptist Church
I didn’t plan to tear up while having brunch with LeAnn at Dream Café, but a song floating on the air stirred up memories and I couldn’t help myself.The song, “Angel” by Sara McLachlan, speaks of release from suffering and pain with the line, “in the arms of the angel, may you find some comfort here.” The song first touched me some years ago in a slideshow at the funeral of Al Brumley, a talented newspaper columnist and friend who died at age 40 after a long struggle with cancer. He was a deep, beautiful soul, and I hadn’t thought about him in far too long until I heard that song again.
But even before the song I think I was sitting on the edge of an emotional waterfall. Last week LeAnn and I had dinner with a couple who are getting married after both walking through cancer with spouses. And this week we’re seeing a friend on the one-year anniversary of a similar loss. And I woke up one day recently and realized I’m at the 10th anniversary of the start of my own journey through the labyrinth of loss.
So the song stirred me up and then the wave of emotion passed and we were back to talking about everyday issues such as how much it will cost to fix my teeth and what we need to get to keep the rabbits out of the vegetable garden. As we talked we looked out the window and saw another friend down the sidewalk doing some mid-morning shopping. That brought a smile because she has been through her own season of grief and is teaching us all how to keep the faith and live with grace.
It’s just a slice of life and some evidence that, as the song says, there is comfort and release beyond the sadness. Al’s wife Laura found life and love again, as has Bob, Candy, Raylan and others. Monna is doing fine, as are Tom and Charlie. Cookie and Paul are still new on the journey but they’ll know the sunshine again. I can guarantee that because God is good and has shown me the way back into the light.
However, I also can guarantee that tears will still come. Whether one, three, ten or twenty years down the road, the memories linger. They can come out of nowhere and have you crying in your car at a traffic light or sitting at a table waiting for an omelet.