Life is a very precious gift from God but moments like this remind us that life is short and very fragile. The Apostle Paul likened the body to jars of clay. But in these moments, in our sorrow and grief, we take the time that too often we are too busy to take. And that time is the pause in all of life’s busyness to remember the precious moments of life. What is glaringly unfortunate along with that is the recognition that so much of life goes and our memories fade away due to the fact that we are so tied up into daily routine we forget so much of what has shaped the life of our love one and how their life shaped us.
Who would have known that on October 31, 1930 that the birth of one little baby girl would have such a loving capacity and have the ability to impact so many people for so long. Who would have thought so many years ago that little girl would have impact lasting into the next century and beyond. Born in New Mexico as Drucilla Borunda, she never really liked her name and wanted to be called “DRU”. Her life spanned 75 years, 10 months and 14 days. And now you and I are faced with a difficult, if not an impossible task of trying in our short time together to capture the essence of her life and existence as we celebrate her life and say goodbye today.
Again we ask ourselves questions of who could have known that on a Valentine’s Day at a dance hall in California that the love of her life would walk through the door and sweep her off her feet. Who could have guessed that one dance would have led to 57 years of life partnership? And the man wasn’t even much of a dancer at the time? The seed of love that was planted that day would lead this woman to give life to 5 children, who would give her 13 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren. Dru loved her family and in fact, her family was her life. The unanimous opinion of her family is that you could always count on mom, she was always there for you when you need her. She was protective of her kids, especially her daughters as Dennis tells it. It was fun the other night listening to her children come clean before Sanford about how many things they got away with from him. And although Dru protected them from dad, she still spanked them. And they always tried to get over on her too by putting books in their pants, but from what I understand that never really panned out for them. She loved her family and did her best as a mother to instill that family care in them. In the age of TV trays and TV Dinners, they never ate in front of the TV but all gathered at the table and ate together. Sunday was considered family day. Very often, these aspects of our life are taken for granted until they are gone, but as we look back, we are reminded of how thankful we are for them.
Dru’s concern and care for her kids did not end when they moved away. You couldn’t come into the house without eating something and you couldn’t leave without food in a bag to go with you. Dru loved to shop, a trait I understand she passed on to her daughters and really loved Costco. And whenever she left, she would drive to the house of her children, honk the horn and have something that she had picked up for them. She loved the holidays and I was looking at pictures to see how extravagant that could be come for a large family!
It truly is amazing that when we stop and think about life, those people that we become so accustomed to and feel them to be almost simple, are very complex people. As we talked and I asked what you remember most and what you will miss the most, the question became difficult to answer because we are forced to dig through the memory bank and realize all the different parts of life that made up Dru. Through her life she held many jobs. She was an operator, receptionist, worked in a law office, she worked in retail and was a Dental Assistant. But her life was more than work. She was a woman who loved to crochet, and I was looking the other night at some of the beautiful afghans she made. She enjoyed playing pinochle, she bowled, she loved to sing and was a part of the Sweet Adeline’s singing group. She liked food, and Sanford talked of how she liked to watch TV and she would see something on TV to eat and then she wanted it. So he would go and get her what she wanted. Dru loved to shop and people got to know her wherever she went. Her personality was loving and caring, sarcastic, she could get along with anyone (if she wanted to). She was independent and knew how to take charge. She was a fighter until the strokes took her mobility. And as we talked last night, it can be difficult to get past the last 4 years to tap into the life of Dru. But she was much more than a bedridden woman. Dru lived life and loved life. It is clear to see that to Dru, life was a gift and her gift was shared with all whom she came in contact with. One word used to describe Dru was memorable because if you met her once, you never forgot her. The reality is, Dru has gone the way each of us must one day go. Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes chapter 3,
There is a time for everything.
And a season for every activity under heaven-
A time to be born and a time to die;
A time to plant, and a time to uproot;
A time to kill and a time to heal;
A time to tear down and a time to build;
A time weep and a time to laugh;
A time to mourn and a time to dance;
He has made everything beautiful in its time.
He has also set eternity in the hearts of men.
Through Dru’s life, she has known the time of mourning and dancing, the time of planting and uprooting, times of weeping and more so times of laughing. And Dru has seen her time to be born and now her time to die.
Solomon wrote that God has set eternity on the hearts of men and that is very true. And although it may not be a prevalent thought in our daily life, we all have thoughts of eternity. And in moments like this, gathering in the manner we do, the thoughts of death and eternity flood our minds.
Jesus told his disciples in John 10:10 I have come that you might have life and have it abundantly (or to the full). Jesus was not simply talking about life here on this earth, although that is certainly a reality to this passage as well. We were not created for time but for eternity. And this abundant life Jesus talks of here is life in His presence as well. The apostle Paul wrote about this gift in his letter to the Romans. He wrote that the wages of sin is death, but the GIFT OF GOD IS ETERNAL LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS.
Some of Jesus’ last words to those he had poured his life into and dearly loved were concerning death. Jesus knew death was upon Him in just a few hours and he wanted to give comfort to His loved ones as well as giving some eternal words of direction and consolation to us all. John 14:1-3,6 says,
Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. I am the Way and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through me.
One of the great questions in facing death is what happens? When we die, we instantly find ourselves in the presence of God. The Apostle Paul wrote that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. Our question is how will we meet him?
1 Peter 1:3-7: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.
