A good friend of ours passed away a couple of weeks ago, and the funeral was hel at local chapel where she fellowshipped.  When we walked into the hall on the funeral day, there was a plain wooden coffin with paintings of horses all over it and about half a dozen winning ribbons draped over it. It seemed strange to say the least! But we had only known her as an old lady, and that was only a fraction of what she had been and done in her life time! When the Eulogy was given by her daughter, we learned how she had been involved in competitive horse riding for a good part of her life.

    I couldn’t help thinking how we all have seasons in our lives, and those who have only known us for a few years have no idea of what we used to be like. What we are as old people, is only half of what we were or are! I had no idea that Julie had ever been into horses or competitive horse riding! Her daughter said she had drawers full of winning ribbons from her competitions.

     When we were younger, my brother and sister-in-law had a farm next door to ours and we used to do all our big jobs together as a team. I remembered when my sister-in-law died, of this season of our lives and how we used to work and play together. Our children grew up together as one big family, and got into all sorts of mischief.       I thought of her grand-daughters who had only known her as an older lady, so I sat down and wrote them a letter of the things she used to do when she was younger on the farm, how we all worked together, especially at times like hay making or cattle mustering. Then there was all the work she did as a Bible in Schools teacher, and how we worked together in the camp work at the local Christian Youth Camp. Then there were the sailing days on the harbour, when we would all go out together and have such fun on the water. Then there were the trips that she and her husband used to do as well…. the big one going to England and Europe for five months, as well as several around the South Island. Now there are only a few photos and all the memories that go with them.

    So her grand-daughters thought she belonged to them as an old lady, but hadn’t known that she had had another life when she was a young mother, helping in the general farm work when needed and in her church life as well. It is only at someone’s funeral that we learn of these other seasons in their life that have gone to shape them into the older person that those present knew. Let us see to it that those who attend our funeral when the time comes, will have worthwhile memories of us and that we may be an inspiration in some way to those who know us!