Today I attended my first Catholic funeral, or at
least I think it was my first, as I don’t ever remember doing some of the
things we did today at other funerals. It
probably was one of the hardest funerals I have ever been too, and I have been
to my fair share of funerals over the years.
It was hard walking into that church today, as I went by myself (Aaron had to work) and didn't know who was going to be there that I would really know. The reason this funeral was so hard, because it was for a little baby boy. Watching the parents walk in, and carrying
such a little casket, instantly brought tears to my eyes. I was doing so good,
staying strong and focused, until I looked at the mother, and that’s when it
went downhill for me. I won’t go into
much detail, as I am sure I don’t have a lot of the correct facts. But, we had just seen the parents (Katie and
Steve) two weeks ago at homecoming and they were looking forward to leaving for
Cancun in a couple of days for a friend’s wedding. I remember the glow on Katie’s face as she
talked about going for a spray tan just a day or so earlier, as she didn’t want
to chance the hot sun down there. There
is something about the joy of knowing a little one will be entering the world
soon, and how much happiness and excitement that brings to people. I only actually just met Katie and Steve for
the first time at the end of August, but had heard a lot about the two of them
over the last couple of years. Last
Saturday a post showed up on Facebook on Aaron’s newsfeed from Katie stating
that they needed prayers and they were going to be on the medevac air ambulance
coming home. We didn’t get a lot of details
through the day, but we knew enough that it wasn’t good. Late that evening we
got the news that any friend doesn’t want to hear about another friend – the baby
didn’t make it. Such crushing news. You hear about it happening to lots of
people, but I’ve just never experienced it so close to me. I think the part that hit me the most was how quiet Aaron went when he first got the news. The two of us talked about it, and the whole situation, and at the end, you just didn't know what to really say, as you wonder how or why something like that happens. Little Michael was to enter the world
sometime early in 2014. The service was
very good, and the speech that Steve gave from him and Katie was just so
sweet. It’s hard to imagine what they are
going through this week, but I do know that little Michael touched a lot of
people, and brought a lot of people together today to show their support and
love for Katie and Steve, and the rest of the Raverty and Evans families.
On a little bit of a brighter note, I am patiently
waiting for the news from my best friend on whether her little bundle of joy
has decided to enter the world today. He
or she is supposed to come today, and I really hope SHE does. I am sad that I will be missing the arrival
of this little one, as Rita and I have been friends for a really long
time. We met in my first year or so
living in Alberta, and like a lot of friendships, we have had our ups and downs. I have to say that the last couple of years
have been the best!
It’s almost time for the weekend, and this one is
jam packed for us again. DJing a 50th wedding anniversary party
tonight, and tomorrow we are going to work with HONK on fixing up a house or
two, then running 5kms for breast cancer, and immediately after that we are off
to the Cincinnati Cyclones season opener!! Sunday is a day at home for me,
studying for another history test, while Aaron goes down to Louisville with a
bunch of the fraternity guys to play football with some of the guys from the
Chapter down there. Have a great weekend!!
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