(I will be reposting this each Ash Wednesday.)
My late son Larry always seemed to enjoy Ash Wednesday. Nine years ago in 2013 I went up with him to receive ashes. He heard the traditional admonition: “Remember man thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return.” and had the ashes placed on his forehead. He then did the normal circle turn that he did after receiving Communion, and we went back to our pew.
Little did we know that this would be Larry’s last Ash Wednesday. He died in the wee hours of Pentecost in 2013 of a seizure. (On that dreadful date I said to my wife that one of the greatest gifts God has given us in this life is our inability to see the future.) Now Larry’s physical body is well on its way back to dust, awaiting the Resurrection when it will be reunited with his soul.
Larry is now in the land which knows not Ash Wednesday, but only Eternal Easter, and we are left to experience this Ash Wednesday without him. I have always found Ash Wednesday to be a bleak day and it will be much bleaker yet without my son. However, Ash Wednesday, like death, is not the end, but merely a beginning. As Ash Wednesday is the portal to Easter, death is the portal to eternal life.
Saint Paul noted almost 2000 years ago that if our hope in Christ was limited to this life only that Christians were the most pitiable of men, and that those who slept in Christ would then be the deadest of the dead. Our hope, however, is not limited to this brief sojourn through this Vale of Tears. Christ taught us to call God Father to remind us all that we are children of a loving God. His resurrection revealed to us that God’s mercy and love is not limited to this world, but is for all eternity to those who love God and our neighbor.
Larry, I am confident, now enjoys the Beatific Vision. During his 21 and three-quarters years on Earth we loved him and cared for him to the best of our ability. Now he enjoys the eternal promise of Easter. Ash Wednesday reminds us of our mortality, but it also directs our minds and souls to what lies beyond death, and that is what I will remember as I receive the ashes and hear again, “Remember man thou art dust, and to dust thou shalt return.”, and I am sure, that while I can not see him, Larry will be doing his turn of joy at that moment.
Don, I always love reading this post of your dear son Larry. Gods Blessings to you and your family during this season of Lent.
Thank you Ezabelle.
Don, thank you very much for sharing Larry with all of us here. That is a wonderful reminder of the Eternal Easter, which we should all look forward to in this vale of tears. I hope this Lent is a prayerful and fruitful one for you and your bride.
Thank you Cathy.
Don, May the God of all comfort be near the hearts of you & your family during this season.
I have always thought that one of the greatest blessings that God have us was the fact that through Him, we do not have to spend eternity in this unregenerate, ever decaying, physical body.
In Larry’s honor and for your entire family in the Church Militant on this Ash Wednesday;
1st Peter
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
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to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you
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who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time.
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In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials,
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so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
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Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,
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as you attain the goal of [your] faith, the salvation of your souls.
May the Peace from Christ blanket you and yours on this Lenten journey 2022.
Thank you CT and Philip.
I am late in saying anything. My only words, Don, is that you and Catherine will see Larry again. Philip’s quote from 1st Peter is so very appropriate. I am sorry for any grief you may have.
is that you and Catherine will see Larry again
Nine years ago LQC that belief was the only thing that kept me sane.
Don, I can’t tell you how moving your post was. with your vision of the life to come you give me hope. thank you.
Thank you Bob. From what I have seen in this life I have absolutely no doubt of the grandeur of the life to come for those who die in Christ.
Thanks for sharing these posts about Larry every year, and reminding us of the joy he brought your family. My daughter (now 26) is autistic and we thank God for her every day. I will give her an extra hug tonight…
Thank you Elaine! God bless all autistic kids!
Thank you Elaine! God bless all autistic kids!
May God bless you and your family, from a Confederate admirer of your blog. Out of respect for your ownership of this space, I try to keep my mouth shut (a miracle for a lawyer)), when I disagree with your assessments of this unfortunate period of history. I am proud to stand with you on most issues of our present day. May God Bless you and Larry, now and until you meet again in Heaven.
Thank you JR. No Americans ever fought harder for a cause they believed right than the Americans who fell fighting under the Stars and Bars.