ANGELS SINGING

 I remember her funeral as if it was yesterday…instead of a long time ago.

I remember it was the first step…the beginning of letting go.

The moment we realized…like a summer breeze gently whistling through a tree…

the person who made us smile for a while…is now a memory.

I remember how she loved babies…to her babies had a special charm.

I remember wondering if she noticed the baby at her funeral nestled in her mother’s arms.

This person had a passion for life…a warmth…a smile that would glow.

and though I didn’t know everything about her…I knew all I needed to know.

I knew she was honest and generous…I knew she was gentle, accepting and kind

and when that baby in her mother’s arms began to fuss…I knew she wouldn’t mind.

I think she would have loved her service…it was filled with tributes and scriptures and song…but that same service in that baby’s mind began to run a little long.

She began to cry louder and louder…interrupting the silence and solemnity…

but I didn’t mind it in the least…her cries were like a hymn to me.

I thought the moment she started crying…the service was improved…

and I knew the person we were saying goodbye to would wholeheartedly approve.

There is so much we don’t understand about life and death…I’m glad we don’t know everything…it means we’re free to wonder if a baby crying is one way the angels sing.

Free to ponder at the funeral of a friend…when we hear a baby cry…

if that’s how the angels welcome them to heaven…as we all say goodbye.