It was a beautiful passing today for Don Vrba Sr. The real journey is for those of his loved ones left behind is in the days, weeks and months to come. Please continue to pray for them.
Just when you think you don’t have tears to shed, memories and kind gestures from the past blindside you. I thought for sure I’d be there for Neal, to be his support. He was the one that worked for and with Don after all. However, throughout the entire Mass I recalled 14 years of anniversary dinners that he secretly paid for without our knowledge till the bill came ‘paid’, and the many favors and gestures that came our way (most importantly Neal’s progress with Wholesale). Or the time he came to see Neal in the hospital when we were uncertain of Neal’s MS diagnosis and he sat with Neal nearly all afternoon, getting onto him when Neal answered a work related call. And then listening to Neal’s memories on the way to the cemetery, and how he’ll miss the ‘high fives’ when they landed a job, and the ‘hey dude’ with a pound on the back as a greeting every morning, and on and on.
Too many tears to count by the end of the day.
If I learned anything today (as I suppose I do with every funeral I attend) it is that we should tell those that we love and care about what they truly mean to us. I think we hide from doing this because it’s ‘awkward’ or we are afraid of their reaction. I thought about one of my uncle’s today, one that has always impressed upon me to find a man like him who is loyal, generous, firm yet compassionate and intelligent. I always wanted a man like my uncle and I know I’ve found him. Today made me realize that I need to tell my uncle this because I’m not sure how much longer he will be with us either.
Life is precious…but it is but a spec of our true ‘life’ when we have Christ as our Redeemer. For life eternal that we’ll get to spend in Heaven is beyond any joy we could imagine.
Praise be to God!
Blessings
Shannon