(I am grateful that I have been asked to share tidbits and feelings here on the RS blog. I will post some thoughts from time to time that are "of good report". I hope you like them.)
He was the kind of man that I would hide from when I saw him coming up the hall. Not only because he was my boss's boss, but because he was the kind of man who could look into your soul.
I didn't really get to know him until I graduated high school. We worked together for only a short time. But every time he saw my mother, he asked how I was doing.
It was only six months ago when he told me I looked as young as I did when he saw me at my wedding. But I knew better. We laughed, we talked about our families, our plans for the future. He was just that kind of man.
Mom called me less than a month ago. She must have known how much I looked up to him.
The phone call went something like this:
Mom: Your Uncle Bob has cancer of the blood…He has about a month to live.
Me, pausing: Are you sure?
It took me a couple of days for the news to sink in.
He passed away the next Wednesday. Much sooner than we planned. I didn’t even get a chance to see him before he left.
People come and go on this earth. We are only here for a short time. Some people will leave lasting imprints in our lives; we may have some on theirs too. It makes it difficult to let go. It makes it hard to say goodbye.
But because of a loving Heavenly Father. We don’t have to say goodbye forever. We only have to say “until we meet again”. And for that, I am grateful.