My husband and I went to a funeral the other day. A former Young Life kids’ dad passed away so we went to support her. I have not been to too many funerals in my life and hope to keep it that way. The funeral was filled with laughter, tears, and many stories about his life. His oldest son spoke for the kids and told about how he was as a father. He was quite a bit older than the two other siblings and told about what traits of his father he saw in the other two kids. Then a niece spoke, and many friends. It got me thinking, what would my family and friends say about me?
What would my kids remember? What stories and fun memories would they share? What traits am I passing on to them? It’s not something I particuarly like to think about but I feel it’s important. I want to make sure that my kids have enough memories and stories to choose from. I want to spend as much time with them as possible while I am here. I want to pass on the things I have learned and what I love to them. I want to make sure that if they do have to speak at my funeral that the good times they remember would be enough to drown out their tears.
I think about that everytime I go to a funeral, which has unfortunately been happening way too often lately in our family. It’s hard to think about, but you’re right, it’s important. I think it helps put the day-to-day stuff in perspective. Thanks for giving me a little reminder. After a long day with the kids, I have to remember that I really am building something worthwhile here.
July 31st, 2008 at 10:54 pmFor what it’s worth, I think Ashlyn and Emily will have plenty of wonderful things to say about you when you finally do go see Jesus. Hopefully they will be old ladies, though!