There is a scene in The Thornbirds where people walk over a hill to the cemetery, yet, again, to bury a loved-one. Our family at Otter Creek will be making that trek again. We have lost another beloved member.
I did not know her well. There are many who did, and they loved her dearly. From the age of fourteen, she suffered with multiple physical maladies. When I consider her life, I think of a saying that has become a t-shirt icon: "though she be but little, she is fierce." Possibly, this originally referred to baby girls, but it is perfectly descriptive of this amazingly determined, yes, fierce woman.
She fought to live her life with purpose and dignity. She gave birth to a beautiful daughter; a daughter that conventional medical wisdom would have said was impossible. She knew better. She found in her devoted husband, a best friend.
Last week she grew weary of the fight. Make no mistake; she did not give up. She made the courageous choice to live her faith. She knew she could move peacefully on to the next phase of her eternal journey when family reassured her that she had served them well, and because of this, they will be fine.
This family, and her friends are weighing on my heart today. I think back twenty years ago when I, too, lost a good friend much too soon. She left a husband and three children. We survived the loss because we prayed and grieved, and remembered together. These who presently grieve will do likewise.
Life can be very painful as part of a church that cares and hurts so deeply. My life would be greatly diminished if I were not.
So, I am sad, yet grateful today. Grateful for having known, if only a little, Tracey Moore, and profoundly saddened for Kevin, Grace, and other family and friends.
I wish you, on this day,
Blessings
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