On Tuesday, I got one of those phone calls that come when we least expect it and take us back to another time. The news was that Albert had died that very day. I had lost track of him nearly twenty years ago, but I always remembered . . . .
Albert was my mechanic, but he first sent me down the road to another garage. He looked me over and sent me packing. He did not have time to work on my car. Albert was notoriously independent. One did not hurry him. Later, when I learned to say, "If you have time, would you check . . ." and he always had the time--lots of time to work and to visit.
Albert was not a church-going person--although I believe he was baptized and probably had been confirmed in the very church that I was serving. I suspect it was all more important to him that he would admit to anyone else. Things went deep with Albert. He always came to funerals for family and long-time friends. He asked me to do the funeral service for his mother many years ago, and I did. It was an honor to be asked.
I remember how Albert cared for his wife, Maxine. It was especially evident as he supported her when her memory faded away. Albert worked on cars in his shop while keeping an eye focused on whatever Maxine might be doing in the house. It was not easy, but really loving someone seldom is.
On Tuesday evening, when the news came that Albert had died, I remembered what he said when I stopped by the garage for a final time in the summer of 1993. I went to tell him that I was moving away. Albert responded with but one sentence: "I thought you'd be here forever." It was not that I had worn out my welcome with him; but his voice revealed, if but for a moment, a feeling of sadness. Forever. That's a commitment we simply cannot make and certainly cannot keep. Forever rests in the hands and heart of Another One--the one who creates, loves, and keeps us. Forever is always about God.
Today, Albert's funeral is happening. My heart is there. My prayers are focused on that distant place that had been my home and for a friend who has remained close in heart. And, I find myself echoing back the worlds he spoke in 1993: "Albert, I thought you would be here forever."
Holy One,
now let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:
my own eyes have see the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:
a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.
Holy One, be merciful to us and bless us with life--eternal, glorious, forever! Alleluia. Amen.
Albert was my mechanic, but he first sent me down the road to another garage. He looked me over and sent me packing. He did not have time to work on my car. Albert was notoriously independent. One did not hurry him. Later, when I learned to say, "If you have time, would you check . . ." and he always had the time--lots of time to work and to visit.
Albert was not a church-going person--although I believe he was baptized and probably had been confirmed in the very church that I was serving. I suspect it was all more important to him that he would admit to anyone else. Things went deep with Albert. He always came to funerals for family and long-time friends. He asked me to do the funeral service for his mother many years ago, and I did. It was an honor to be asked.I remember how Albert cared for his wife, Maxine. It was especially evident as he supported her when her memory faded away. Albert worked on cars in his shop while keeping an eye focused on whatever Maxine might be doing in the house. It was not easy, but really loving someone seldom is.
On Tuesday evening, when the news came that Albert had died, I remembered what he said when I stopped by the garage for a final time in the summer of 1993. I went to tell him that I was moving away. Albert responded with but one sentence: "I thought you'd be here forever." It was not that I had worn out my welcome with him; but his voice revealed, if but for a moment, a feeling of sadness. Forever. That's a commitment we simply cannot make and certainly cannot keep. Forever rests in the hands and heart of Another One--the one who creates, loves, and keeps us. Forever is always about God.
Today, Albert's funeral is happening. My heart is there. My prayers are focused on that distant place that had been my home and for a friend who has remained close in heart. And, I find myself echoing back the worlds he spoke in 1993: "Albert, I thought you would be here forever."
Holy One,
now let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:
my own eyes have see the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people:
a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.
Holy One, be merciful to us and bless us with life--eternal, glorious, forever! Alleluia. Amen.
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