One night, we were awakened by the ringing of the telephone. My husband, Darryl, got up to answer it in the living room. I was not fully awake, but I was very much aware that it was deep in the night. Phone calls this late are never good news. I lay there struggling with the reality of that and trying to pretend that maybe the phone hadn’t rang, or somehow it would just be a wrong number, or some other benign happening. Continue reading What a Relief!
More than 16 years ago now, I stood at my bathroom vanity on the phone and listened as my father explained to me how he didn’t think we were going to get much of a break between the death of my mother – whom we had buried only two weeks prior – and the death of my brother, Robin. I struggle with writing this now almost as much as I struggled with comprehending the reality of the situation then. My brother had been diagnosed with cancer about two years before. He was five years older than me, and had been my hero growing up. He was Superman. He was adventurous, athletic, brave, beautiful, and I was pretty sure he could leap tall buildings in a single bound. It was unthinkable that at just 38 years old he had already found his kryptonite, but it was unbearable to face the loss of both my mother and my brother at the same time. Continue reading Wherever He Leads I’ll Go
In 1987, a little movie called, Date With An Angel, came out. It was a silly romantic comedy starring Michael E. Knight (of All My Children fame), Phoebe Cates (of Fast Times at Ridgemont High fame), and the not-quite-as-famous, Emmanuelle Beart as the angel. It was no huge hit. It only gets 5.8 stars out of 10 on IMDB. If you haven’t seen it, you should. It’s funny and sweet, and oddly enough, one of my favorite movies. I can quote many lines from this movie even though I haven’t seen it for years. (After writing this, I am going to find it and watch it again though!) For all the movies silly little antics and scenarios, there is a scene at the end of the movie that I just love. The angel comes to escort Michael E. Knight’s character to heaven when he dies. It’s actually a beautifully depicted scene. I will never forget the first time I saw it. I got tears in my eyes. It was quite a surprise to have such a poignant moment in this funny little movie, and it was pretty close to how I had always imagined that moment to be like. Continue reading Date With An Angel
“I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God while I live.” Psalm 104:33
Music has been a very important part of my life always. It started with my mother’s lullabies, then my father’s folk songs, and then gospel music. Continue reading Sing Unto The Lord
While pipes sing out
Amazing Grace
Carry me to my final
resting place
Let my people
with their own hand
Bury me in
the family land
Next to my grandparents,
my mother, my brother
Where we have been laid
one after the other
That is where
my body shall stay
Until the blessed
Judgment Day
But do not mourn
or linger there
At the grave
you mark with care
For I am not in it
and that is a fact
My spirit is steady,
salvation intact
I’ve gone on to Heaven
a place is prepared
To celebrate and worship
and wait for you there
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