Death
Listened to Her Heart
Tonight my mom and I watched a story on the news about a father who lost his 20 year old daughter in a tragic accident. Her organs were donated and were able to save 4 lives. The father started a bike trek across the country to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation. On […]
Missing Loved Ones
One of the scripture readings at church today was the famous, “Road to Emmaus” story. Jesus’ disciples saw him die and leave them “forever”. They were missing him tremendously – until He showed up. Then everything changed. The deacon who gave the homily compared the feeling that Jesus’ friends had to the way we feel […]
Fighter Plane
The other night I volunteered with the Fostering Hope Foundation at the monthly cooking events. I noticed that the young woman who organizes the event had a new tattoo of a WWII airplane. She shared the story of the unusual work of art. Her grandfather was in the Air Force and flew a fighter plane in WWII. […]
Beauty in Death
This afternoon I went to a caregiver’s support group. One of the people talked about the recent death of their mother. They were happy to be with her during her final moments. Several people then shared about their own experience with losing a loved one. They had very similar sentiments – that they were blessed […]
Keeping the Traditions
Today my mom’s friend came over for their usual weekly visit. My mom had a valentine all ready for her. Her husband passed away a couple of years ago. She told us that her daughter bought her a box of chocolates just like her husband used to. Her daughter was making sure that she was […]
Wonderful Women
I had lunch with a friend today. As we talked about our current state of life, our children, and our grandchildren, it was rather remarkable what a similar path our lives have taken. It was so good to be able to talk with each other who really understood the highs and lows and the emotions […]
Praying For All Souls
On Wednesday, the Catholic church celebrated All Souls Day – a day when people remember and pray for their loved ones who have died. Today the cathedral had a memorial prayer service and choir concert that I took my mom to. Each family was invited to light a candle representing those who have passed away. […]
Praying With the Saints
Today I went to the caregivers group that I have been attending. When I first met the people there, one gentleman told us that he was caring for his wife who had a stroke that left her in a bad way. He said he was used to her taking care of him and now it […]
Life of Laughter
When I worked for a retail store many, many years ago, we were like a family. As time went on, people went many different directions, but a large number of people stayed in touch. One good friend in particular seems to be connected to just about everyone. She contacted me the other day and told me […]
Singing With the Angels
My mom’s brother was an incredible singer – especially in his youth. When he was about 12 years old, he won multiple competitions leading him to sing a solo at the Chicagoland Music Festival in Soldier’s Field in front of a crowd of about 61,000. He actually won first place that year. Metropolitan Opera singer […]
Still Finding God 