Returning to what is Real

This week brought death's reality close to many of us who read this blog. Mary's funeral is today...and it will be attended by hundreds of people. Even if you never knew her, I invite you to continue reading...I offer a blend of my past and ongoing reflections about life...death...resurrection.

Years ago I was privileged to companion a dear friend and kindred spirit as she approached death. Our conversations during that time had very little to do with the physical reality, because we both knew that there was little more to say. Her body was being consumed and was dissolving -- each day there was less of the flesh and no desire to give the body any more attention.

Instead, we spoke of the increasing wellness of her soul, and the magnifying peace of being closer, moment by moment, to the passage into final rest-- into eternal wholeness and wellness in Christ.

She gave me a picture that she had treasured for years. The road was one traveled by many. The tree was simultaneously dead...barren ....and beautifully alive....vibrant! I cherish the image as an expression of all that I experienced with Regina in the last hours I shared with her.


The poem inscribed on the picture, by Julia Esquivel, reads:

Accompany us then on this vigil
And you will know what it is to dream!
You wiill then know how marvelous it is to live threatened with Resurrection!

To dream awake,
To keep watch asleep.
To live while dying and to know oneself

Resurrected




While speaking and praying with my spiritual director this week, I heard her prayerful response to my account of Mary's passing: We all get to walk that path...it is always before us. It is just that we don't always acknowledge that reality. She reminded me of the precious value of living mindfully, with a deep awareness (even if understanding is evasive) of what is TRULY going on. Since my human faculties can't grasp that fully, I know that I need to rely upon the expansive vision provided by prayer...the God lens mentioned in the June 3 post.

Mortal life is embellished by our understanding that it is temporary. Just recently I pondered the question: How would you spend this day if you knew it was your final one? So many concerns and illusory notions would peel away, wouldn't they? How does that understanding enhance your inclination to return to what is really going on, what is truly being given in the experiences and relationships before you TODAY?