Two friends chatted about someone dear to the hearts. For one, the conversation was about his only sister. For the other, it was a about a family friend and lost opportunities. Even with time, the intensity of the loss was still present. The conversation ended with a sense of unfinished business. The burial details had been put away, forgotten for another day.
The conversation came and went. It happens with friends. In the pressing of the moment, I often forget about the details of our lives that bind us together. In this case, the memories came back a few weeks ago. I found myself returning to the conversation, wondering about the missing pieces.
“Do you mind if I take up your quest to find her burial site? If it is ok, can you share the details that you have?”
As I read his note, my mind went back to an afternoon almost forty years ago. I recall shedding a few tears. As I think back, I feel them as though they were for my heart and the awareness of lost opportunities. His physical details were consistent with my memory. Maybe I could take up his quest to find the headstone.
At the end of the day, after hours of web research, emails, a visit to a cemetery office, and a extended period of searching the headstones in two blocks, I found it! It was thirty-nine years and 10 months ago to the day when I was last year. In the tropical heat, the sweat from my brow easily mixed with quiet tears. It was good to be in this place, to remember.
I recalled an old writer’s words; “Remember, dear friends, that the apostles of our Master, Jesus Christ, told us this would happen: ‘In the last days there will be people who don’t take these things seriously anymore.’” (Jude 1.17) I remembered and wondered about what else I have forgotten.
Christian-Cemetery Path 15, Block 1, site #1273 reminds me that it is never too late to remember and do something with the memory.
