Little did I know when I scheduled my last post about grief that before it ever appeared online, my own husband would suddenly pass away.
I have been acutely sensitive to those who make thoughtless comments about and to those who are grieving, and I’ve personally lost relatives, friends and pets over the years. That sensitivity is now heightened. Though we sometimes had more downs than ups as my husband struggled through serious issues, losing one’s eternal companion to a condition not related to any of his known illnesses is a great shock.
Having military honors rendered following an uplifting funeral service at our LDS church was wonderful. There are few words to describe the respect and compassion that the military provides for a widow and any family present. I will always treasure the United States flag that was folded and presented to me following the bugler’s sweet and soft rendition of Taps.
It tore my heart out to watch the funeral director wheel my husband’s casket away to the waiting hearse, pending burial at Miramar National Cemetery in San Diego. He is going on a long journey without me but eventually we will be reunited.
Members of our congregation and other friends have been wonderful in their support and I know I can rely on them in the coming weeks and months. Some of the needed decisions will be relatively easy to make; others will be very difficult with long-term consequences.
Goodnight, sweet prince. And Godspeed.