I almost didn't even realize that today marked an entire year since Ms. Julia went to be with Jesus (see blog post a year ago: To Ms. Juila, RIP). I can't believe it's been a whole year.
I remember it like it was yesterday, sitting in Jazzman's Cafe with my computer and getting a text from Victor telling me she had gone home and asking if I could sing with the choir at the funeral. I sat there with tears slowly running down my face as I scrolled through facebook and read post after post about a beautiful, loved, and influential woman who was finally free of pain. The posts were full of sadness accompanied with joy. Sorrow at the loss of someone so beautiful, inside and out, but thankfulness and happiness that she was no longer held hostage by the pain of cancer, now in absolute bliss with the Jesus she spent her life loving so much.
Ms. Julia will never be forgotten, nor will the influence she had on so many lives. Her passion for life and serving others was beautiful and inspirational. Even when she was very sick she continued to put others first. I remember having a conversation with her a little before I left for college. We talked about me, my summer, the college experience I was about to have, what I was going to do, not about her or her illness or how she was feeling. Her others-centeredness was rare, her love for the Lord was beautiful.
She lead the youth choir for years, and the friends and relationships I formed in that group, as well as the simple feeling of belonging, helped to shape my life. When she passed away last year, I remember wanting to change my life to live more like her, to live a life that would make her proud. To serve wholeheartedly and unselfishly as she had, a lifestyle I am still striving and praying and working towards.
Ms. Julia was beautiful, loving, serving, and had a heart for Jesus. She's at peace now, absolutely free of pain and sorrow. I can't wait to see her in Heaven one day.
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