Neil, I pray that yesterday-and all difficult days-are filled with fond memories of your mother. There is joy and hope in the fact that you will see her again, and when you do, there will be no more death to contend with. At the same time, I know future hope and joy can be hard to appreciate when that sick sense of loss creeps in. Sometimes I think about Jesus crying over the death of Lazarus; there is comfort in knowing death is painful even for one The One who has conquered it. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you, Heidi. Yesterday was alright. Nice talks with family. Grief is a wiley foe, laying ambushes for you when you don't expect it. Grief is a trusted friend, reminding you of the dear price of what is lost. I do these posts to tell folk about my mother, and to tell myself. Thank you all for bearing with me as I do.

And, yes, heaven/the new earth will be a lovely place, the fulfillment of so many longings, the true ones that survive dying.