Re: Going to be a hard weekend...
Been pretty much out of the loop the last week and a half ... just saw this thread.
Gary, you have my sympathy, and my prayers. It is tough, I know. Lost my MIL & FIL to long, slow, agonizing deaths and my father to a sudden heart attack. It doesn't matter how it happens, it hurts. But God is able to strengthen and sustain. Time heals wounds, but yesterday was the 10th anniversary of my Dad going to meet Jesus and I still miss him.
I have shared this story at many funerals ...
The young musicians hired to play for the Duke of Austria's summer festivities were ready to go home. Summer was over and they were tired, but the Duke kept them there.
The brilliant composer, Franz Joseph Haydn was sympathetic and offered to help them. So he composed a unique symphony that began with a full orchestra. As the symphony progressed, fewer instruments were included in the score. One by one, as their parts were finished, the musicians took their instruments and walked off the stage.
By the end of the composition, only two musicians remained - the first and second violinists playing a beautiful duet. The Duke got the point. Shortly afterward, he sent the grateful musicians home. To this day Haydn's Symphony #45 is known as the "Farewell Symphony."
Our heavenly Father, the great composer, has arranged a beautiful symphony for each of us. When our time is over, we can go home to rest. But the score continues. It is not time for the rest of us to give up, but to keep pressing on, remembering the beautiful music we made together, and expecting more beauty from the Father to come.
May God bless you, Gary. Keep making beautiful music, for you and for your family. It will help keep your mother and father's memories alive.
