A priest friend of mine, Fr. Tom Washburn, shares his homilies online. Today’s said in part that he had come across a prayer card that had belonged to his aunt who had passed away a number of years ago. The night before her funeral, her daughters, gave him this prayer card, which they had found in her well-worn Bible. The card contained a well-known poem often read at funeral’s called “Safely Home.” In the margins his aunt had handwritten two notes. One said, “Please read this at my funeral,” and the other, “My last prayer is that you all get right with God, so I’ll see you all again.” His aunt, especially as she was nearing her own death, had a mind and a heart that was fixed firmly on Heaven – and she wanted the same for everyone she loved. The rest of his homily went on to describe how Heaven is our destination and how we all want to get there, but typically don’t think about it or work towards that on a daily basis. We get so caught up in daily activities, necessities, and problems that we can forget to look up. And I know I have many faults and failures and can then feel like I’ll never make it. Thank God for His Mercy to be able to start again and keep going. A relative sent us that same prayer card when my father died. We read it often and get teary eyed. It is a beautiful reminder of the invitation we each have to make our way towards Heaven, to be with all our loved ones in God’s loving Presence forever.

I Found God today in the poem Safely Home.