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It's quiet out here in the hinterland. There's a stillness broken only by the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves... our chimes softly sing their bright songs. Off in the distance, the coyote chorus takes up their tune.
I look out my home office windows, and see only the darkness... the darkness of the evening has descended much like the darkness of loss descended when I came to find out that Luke had left us to start his journey to the Lord.
There is no light to break the darkness, save the light that is there for us all; the light that was there for this most precious gift.
With the rest of my family, I spent several hours at Steve and Vikki's house today. The signs of Luke... the Lego kits, the Star Wars DVD's, the books... and a Bible were still there in the living room where he breathed his last, surrounded by those who loved him the most.
Luke wasn't with us all that long. But my memory of him will stay with me forever. His lessons to me about courage and faith will stand the test of time. The strength of Steve and Vikki has also provided me a lesson as to what it is to be truly strong in the face of almost unspeakable adversity.
I will miss Luke as long as I live. And I will never forget his unstinting belief that for him, Heaven was his ultimate destination; and for the rest of us the sure and certain knowledge that there is no more deserving soul than than the one he was fortunate to possess.
I face unpleasant and difficult battles ahead in my professional realm. But compared to the battles Luke and his family faced, they will be mere fender-benders in comparison; the rough and tumble of what I do, the odd bump and bruise compared to the fire fights of courage and faith that were every day of the last 3 years of Luke's life for him and his family.
Where he is now, there is no pain... no cancer... no tears. There is safety, and warmth and love. And I can think of no one who deserves it more.
I will miss him, and I will never forget him.
Pray for Luke. Remember him.
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How beautiful a remembrance.... there is a theory that says life is defined by death and perhaps it is. I know in my own life I have seen those close to me pass from this life and in all reality, there is a legacy that lives beyond anything that we think is important. It truly lives on in the love that we give to others, the way we make them feel when we are around and the memories that we carry of them when they are gone. Love, family and memories are all we truly have in this world and they become priceless when you understand that they are all we will ever have that is truly ours. When a life is reduced to the things that are left behind, one realizes that it is not about things, it is about people. May you and your family be blessed with all that is truly important in this world.
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