I think back till around the time the daybreak came upon us on Sunday, December 25th, 2011. It was then that I was awakened by the annoying sound of my cell phone ringing. I must admit that I purposely selected that annoying ringtone because it was so loud. However, on this particular morning – CHRISTMAS MORNING – that phone was in jeopardy of losing its life. So, reluctantly – while my eyes were still closed, I reached for my phone, blindly picked it up and tapped the little green button – all in attempt to relieve my ears from that annoying sound. It was then that my displeasure was shattered by the soft calming sound of my big sister’s voice. Not her normal voice. Her voice this time was calming, way too calming – so calming that I immediately knew what the conversation involved, my mother’s medical condition. But instead, my sister told me that our mother had passed away.
As my sister talked to me, it seemed as if her voice and conversation were replaced by these thoughts: In the past, I had often wondered what it would be like if my mother were to die. To think of such made me sad. To dwell on it made me cry. And to wallow in thought about it made me uncontrollably miserable. But now that I found myself living through that fear it seems as if I heard a voice saying to me, in my head and in my heart, “I am giving your mother the best Christmas present that she has gotten ever in her life: I brought her home to be with me.” And thus I have found myself in a state of peace that I cannot explain. Not a normal peace as we would call it, but a peace that rivals my normal ways of responding. I take this time to encourage you all to mend any bridges and heal all wounds that may be between you and anyone you love.
