Grief

We sat beside each other in "IV chairs" in a cancer clinic in Mexico. We were always joking around, seeing the funny side, even somewhat raucous.

After our treatment was over and we returned home, we always kept in touch. I had shared Jesus with her, and there came a day when she asked my wife and me if we would baptise her.

It was June 2024 when we were visiting near her home, and we were able to perform that baptism. She looked in great shape, but was complaining about some ongoing health battles.

Ever since that time, I would occasionally get these social media nudges asking after my health and giving me her life updates.

Last week, I realised that I hadn't had a nudge for a while, and so I nudged her. There was no response. Eventually, a couple of days later, I sent her a text directly to her phone. Still no response.

This past weekend, much to my surprise, I received a text from her brother using my friend's phone to answer me. I was shocked to discover that our dear friend had passed into eternity in late September.

Even though I know she walked with and loved Jesus, and even though I rejoice with her family that she is freed from her pain and struggles, and is now with the LORD, it's a funny thing how waves of grief and inexplicable deep pain in the emotions keep surfacing.

Grief is such a funny thing. One moment, you burst out laughing at some funny memory. And the next moment, you're fighting back the tears because that person is gone. I knew my friend Joelle for only a short period of time in this decade. And yet her life, memory, and mark on my life went so deep. What an amazing thing!

How sobering it is to realise that our life will so deeply mark the lives of others (hopefully for good, and not negatively), and this even after sometimes the most brief of encounters! How important it is for us to walk wisely and in the fear of the LORD, understanding that our lives impact others even in the most brief moments of passing!