Funerals – and Life!

Too many funerals! Wendy and I  are in that season of life, where so many of our peers are passing on, and there are an increasing number of ‘life celebrations’. In just one week, a year or two ago, we had three. And last year, I gave so many eulogies at so many funerals, that I started wondering who would be left to do mine!

But despite the obvious sadness, there have been true celebrations of lives lived to the full, with assembled families bearing testimony to the love and good values of their departed loved one.

I love Norfolk, and the picturesque round-towered Saxon church at Tasburgh, was a fitting backdrop to the emotional goodbye to Judy S last week. Likewise, another round-towered church, St. Margaret’s, in Old Catton, was a warm and inviting venue when we celebrated the life of Tim A.

But so many of my friends are, or have been, practising Christians. And so I feel that ‘Au revoir’ is more appropriate than ‘Goodbye’. My life is holistic, which was a new word to me a few decades ago. My life does not have compartments, where family is separate from friends, or where work is separate from faith. My priorities are faith, family and friends, but they are all part of life’s big mix. I love Norfolk and I love God, and so I can write about both in one article, or blog, or book.

I trust that when I die, family and friends will be sad to lose me, but also feel that my life is worth celebrating. I have staggered through emotional valleys, but more often danced on the mountaintops. I have been amazed at the goodness of God to me, and been humbled by the love of family and friends. And the county of Norfolk has been the enchanting backdrop to so much of life.

I have tried to express my love, and fascination and appreciation of the county in BIG BLUE SKY. Lovely people. Curious accent. Memorable characters. Fascinating history. The book is available at many book shops across the county, or from me (signed or unsigned) for £10 including p&p (U.K. only).