Rick and I returned last night from the services for Ginger. She passed on June 25. I'm not sure how her husband Brian, and 3 sweet little girls will recover from losing their wife and mother. Ginger is definitely a special person, dedicated to the Lord and to her family. I can't use the past tense because I don't believe in it. She is still alive, just in another place, a place that is all love and in the presence of God.
Ginger has been battling the autoimmune disease that attacked her liver for over 20 years. She received a new liver 15 years ago, had good and bad days and years (mostly good since she was such a positive person, reminds me of my brother Charles), and was able to marry her perfect soulmate, have 3 beautiful, sweet daughters, and loved life.
I remember after one of my mom's surgeries when she was having problems with her medications, I called Ginger and she talked with me about them for a long time, helping me to understand what had happened and what we could do.
The battle Ginger had against the lymphoma 2-3 years ago just really took a toll on her body. As more organs began to fail, she needed more transplants than just a new liver. In and out of the hospital these last few months, finally getting a staph (?) infection from the hospital that went septic throout her body, it was just too much. She was sedated (a medical coma) to allow her body to relax and fight the diseases. Despite prayers and pleadings to the Lord asking for a miracle, it was not to be.
The Visitation was Mon from 4-8. People were lined up at 4pm, and the line was steady and didn't end until 8:45. So, so many people wanted to come and express love and sorrow. So many people came that I said if this many come to the funeral tomorrow there will not be room to hold them. It was delightful but expected to see the impact she has had on so many people. Their church community was amazing. They had been bringing in meals 2-3 times a week for several years. Brian said he hasn't mowed his lawn for 2 years. This is truly the way that church and community is supposed to work. The eulogy given at the funeral service on Tues by one of her pastor's was a wonderful tribute to her love and dedication to the Lord, and to a life well lived. She lives on in her 3 amazing daughters: Mallory 13, Katelyn 7, Christyn 5. Mallory wants to be a pastor (at least for now), a very worthy career goal and reminds me of Ginger. Katelyn has Barbara's beautiful strawberry blonde hair, and Christyn looks like a mini Ginger, right down to the curly curly light brown hair.
At another funeral I heard one of the speakers say that we live to die and die to live (Christie Proctor, speaker was Russ Lefler). I really like that. Yes, as C.S. Lewis so beautifully put it, this is not our final resting station. Our final station is with God. As Jolene said about Charles in an Easter Sunday talk, the Lord created our bodies to die, not live forever in this fallen world. We don't want to be "stuck" here - we want to return to God.
But all this is small consolation to those of us who remain. We want our loved ones with us. We want to be able to call them, see them, talk with them, laugh and love with them. And I guess I will have to talk with Him to really understand His plan that says young children don't need their mothers. Isn't there a better way? I'm not trying to be rude or saying I know better than God. I need to understand this, an understanding that I don't think will come in this life.
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