Legacy Matters

Black Rider of Death

A wonderful essay by Gordon Atkinson, Everett Joseph Smith Was a Real Boy   

Gordon Atkinson is a Real Live Preacher who sometimes is an agent of grace and hope, sometimes the

....Black Rider of Death.

People indulge in all sorts of denial while they are waiting for the minister. It’s a blessed procrastination that helps them make it for a short time. And then you appear, framed in the hospital doorway, bible in hand.
 

I am come. Let the grieving begin.

Very hard when a baby is born too soon at twenty weeks and can not last for long.

Before I left my house that evening I asked my wife one question. “I know that being there in the name of Christ is the main thing, but is there anything else I can do for them?” 
 
This is what she said:
 
“If you can, find a way to make their goodbye memorable. They need to remember that he was real. In the coming days, many of their friends and family will want to pretend that this child never existed. They will want to gloss over the reality of his life in an attempt to ease their pain. Don’t be a part of that. All they will ever have is the memory of this goodbye, so make it the best goodbye you can.”


via Happy Catholic and the World According to Chuck