This has been a tough week for our family. Kate’s aunt Ann whom she was close to died on Tuesday. She had been battling breast cancer for almost eight years. I did the funeral on Thursday with one of Kate’s cousins. Ann wanted the service to be in her own words, “Light and fluffy”, meaning she wanted it not to be too serious but upbeat, like she was.
I first met Ann 15 years ago when I came to Tennessee courting one of her nieces. When I think of Ann, I first think of her smile. Ann was a person who smiled, who smiled ear to ear. Ann’s face radiated her spirit. She was a positive person who radiated warmth. She was an encourager, the life of the party. She was always cracking jokes, even in her last days. Ann was an easy person to talk to.
Ann was a person of hospitality. I remember that every time you came by she gave you her full attention and did anything she could to make you feel at home.
Ann was an accepting person. As an outsider and as a Yankee, I always felt that she liked me and that made a difference. She believed that you should love and accept everybody.
Ann was a person of faith. She accepted Christ as a young girl at Vacation Bible School and trusted him for her salvation. I’m told as a young girl that she was very involved in the church in the country when she was young.
Ann was a loving person. She loved her husband, her children, her grandchildren, her sisters and brother, her entire family. Jesus said the 2nd greatest commandment was like the first, to love your neighbor as yourself. She was a person who did that.
We’ll miss you Ann, but we know this is not a goodbye but a see you later.
On Friday night after the graveside and the eating afterwards, there was a fast moving storm which hit our area. It rained hard and was windy. After it passed, we saw a large rainbow which extended from one end of the sky to the other. It was the most beautiful rainbow I had ever seen. It was a reminder from God that he is with us in the midst of this difficult journey.
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