The Lilly

The Lilly

by Ellen Brennemann

We can't know why the lily has so brief a time to bloom

in the warmth of sunlights kiss upon its face,

before it folds its fragrance in and bids the world goodnight

to rest its beauty in a gentler place.

But we know that nothing that is loved is ever lost

and no one who ever touches a heart can really pass away,

because some beauty lingers on in each special memory

of which they've been a part.

Today I found myself filled with sadness again. It is amazing how grief strikes you in waves, isn't it? I will have several good days and feel like I'm dealing with all the thoughts and emotions and then I smell a certain smell or hear a certain sound or think a certain thought and I'm right back in the middle of the confusion, the hurt, and the missing Kim. As I was folding laundry this morning I thought of Kim...perhaps because I was in Omaha the last time I really did laundry--scary, I know. (Truly we were not wearing dirty clothes, we just have a lot of them!) My mind took me back to a time long ago when someone else I knew passed away young. This poem was on the card I sent to his wife and it always struck me as beautiful, so I thought I'd share.

Honestly when this hit me today I thought "Oh God, not today, I have too much to do!!" I need to go see our insurance agent to get our new car covered, I need to call the cat vet to get the ball in motion again for him to be "deported," I need to finish these 5 loads of laundry, I need to do some baking and cooking, I need to clean my house, and I would like to spend some time relaxing, too! But first, I need to spend some time with my Bible and with God.