Member-only story
A death before Christmas
And a celebration of life
I just got back from a memorial service for my friend Shirley. I first got to know her daughter, then came to know her. I wasn’t even sure I liked her at first. But as I got to know her, I became enamored by her warmth. She was an outspoken woman who gave of herself. She was a treasure.
It’s a very sad thing for a family when their mother dies a week before Christmas. How do you celebrate when your heart is breaking? But it wasn’t just the family that mourned. The church was packed with friends that had become family because of Shirley’s love.
Yet, the service was filled with laughter as well as tears. One thing that made me laugh — Shirley had picked out the songs that she wanted us to sing. When she knew she was dying, she told the pastor exactly what she wanted. I learned more about her from her selections. One hymn was also one of my favorites. I felt more intimately connected to her because of that.
During the eulogy, I learned new things about my friend. Born in 1944, she got a dual degree in math and physics. Upon graduation, she was the first woman math teacher in her part of Texas. She worked with underprivileged children and wrote grant proposals to bring computers to poor schools. She also earned three master’s degrees, including one in computer science.
