Sunrises and Sunsets

On the way to a visitation last night for a dearly loved woman in our community I took a moment to try and capture in a photo the beautiful patterns across the sky put on display at sunset. The colors sang gloriously--the reds, the oranges, the pinks, the blue sky peaking in and around the edges, the purples; the airplane trails, the thin clouds, the occasional tree or telephone line making a dark imprint on the scene before me. And with the yawn of dusk, the colors slowly faded out and that particular sunset faded away. Words to convey the emotions around loss or fear of loss are difficult. I hope in some small way this brings comfort. 

Sunrises and Sunsets

To be remembered

To leave a legacy

To make a mark

To leave a trace of a story

An adventure

A life well lived

To leave behind a family

A crowded gymnasium full

Of people whose lives you touched

"For he knows our frame, he remembers that we are dust." (Psalm 103:14 ESV)

The plow marches on

Row after row

Another sunset, another harvest

Babies are born, celebrations are had

Lives are remembered of those who have gone on before

"Oh death, where is your victory? Oh death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55 ESV)

The pain of loss lingers

A sorrow that ebbs and flows with the passing waves of time

Eternity sounds so distant and yet too near for anyone's comfort

So...how what why?? our soul cries out in anguish and confusion

"But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls." (Hebrews 10:39 ESV)

We hold fast to Hope

This life, this sunrise

Will pass across the window of this world

In all of its color and detail and vibrancy

Sometimes for moments, sometimes for years and years we can stand in awe and wonder

Observing the gift of life

But knowing each sunrise will come to an end

The heart beat fades, the silence deafens those nearby

But then

Oh the joy that follows for those with Hope

A joy beyond compare that will take every sunrise and sunset and weave them into a new and magnificent tapestry of what is to come

This? This will fade. That?

That will be the moment everything makes sense

And what a day that will be

Dedicated to the late Pam Hubbard and her wonderful family