Recent deaths among family and friends always stir deep reflections in me. For example: Eternity. To me that means something like a timeline without beginning or end, or a forever NOW—infinitely forever—always, and Infinity: the same except with more focus on quantity; ie. infinitely small or large, but also without limit at either end.
Here’s a comforting and optimistic poem. “Safely Home” that was printed in the funeral home visitation event program for my Cousin, Mary Jo Garnet. It serves its purpose, to console the bereaved, well. And it puts a spiritually poetic tone to the emotions, we who cared for her, are experiencing.
Safely Home
I am home in Heaven, dear ones;
Oh, so happy and so bright!
There is perfect joy and perfect beauty
In this everlasting light.
All the pain and grief is over,
Every restless tossing passed;
I am now at peace forever,
Safely home in Heaven at last.
Did you wonder why I so calmly
Trod the valley of the shade?
Oh! But Jesus’ love illumined
Every dark and fearful glade.
And He came Himself to meet me
In that way so hard to tread’
And with Jesus’ arm to lean on,
Could I have one doubt or dread?
Then you must not grieve so sorely,
For I love you dearly still;
Try to look beyond earth’s shadows,
Pray to trust our Father’s will.
There is work still waiting for you,
So you must not idly stand;
Do it now, while life remains
You shall rest in Jesus’ land.
When that work is all completed,
He will gently call you Home;
Oh, the rapture of that meeting,
Oh, the joy to see you come!
Those words are more for the bereaved than the deceased, for no matter our belief, hope, faith or…, none of us are eager to experience this thing we’ve observed as death, the unknown. And none of us can or will escape it. Birth, life, and death, are the obvious observed cycle for all of life—plant-animal—knowledge—understanding–literally everything in the known universe.
And here’s an interesting video presentation from a physicist that I found quite interesting that seems to offer a bridge between religion, which I left many years ago, and science, which I’m now embracing. The birth, growth, death, lifecycle has been going on for eons. I wonder sometimes, if this is really a cycle of life and death, or an infinitely eternal cycle of life moving from stage to stage or dimension to dimension through an infinite universe. Since we already live in eternity, maybe our consciousness evolves—infinitely. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzZ6nHwPfi8