Bittersweet

I've sat down a few times to type up an entry on the ol' blog, but I just can't seem to get my thoughts together in any kind of cohesive, coherent way. There's been a lot going on around here, but I just wanted to write a few things that have been on my mind the last week or so.

Thanksgiving is always a thought-provoking holiday. This year seemed more so than usual. David's great uncle passed away a few days before Thanksgiving. We went to his funeral on Wednesday. I had met the man only a handful of times, but each time he made me feel like a welcome addition to the family, as do his wife and children still. The eulogy, given by one of the sons, went into greater detail and further confirmed my initial impressions of what a good man this uncle was.

He was a good son. He was a good brother. He was a good husband. He was a good father, grandfather, uncle. He worked hard and taught his children to do the same. He appreciated the earth and its beauty. He was a rancher and a cowboy. He was a poet. He played the ukulele in a band (his band actually played one of the songs he wrote at the funeral). He fought in the Korean War. He drove a horse drawn wagon every Summer for a reenactment of travelling the Oregon Trail.

I've had this scripture running around in my head lately, and I think it that have been a motto for how this man lived his life: "...never be weary of good works, but...be meek and lowly in heart; for such shall find rest to their souls." Alma 37:34 (This uncle wasn't LDS, so I hope he doesn't mind that I used a scripture from the Book of Mormon. :) )

As I listened to the eulogy, of all the things this man had done, I looked around at the family and friends and the thought came to my mind that even though a funeral is a sad thing, especially the day before Thanksgiving, most people in attendance were probably feeling grateful that they had a chance to know this man and learn from him and be inspired by him to be a better person. That's how I felt, anyway.