I will be sending in my application for student licensure in embalming and funeral directing this week. I have gathered almost everything I need and signed on all the dotted lines. Its a strange feeling--one that feels final and good--like a quiet certainty. Its the same certainty I have when people think I am joking about my career goals. I just laugh a little along with them but deep down I remember the widow shaking my hand and offering the most smile she can muster as she steps away from the grave of her husband. I remember the child asking to watch us cover the grave of his friend as seeks to satisfy his curiosity about the finality of it all. I remember the family who buried two loved ones within a week and how grateful they were for our attentiveness to their every need. I will have more and more to remember and to hold for those whose hands are full at the moment, but who will one day look back and remember for themselves their loved one being laid to rest.
Despite my doubts and reservations about this career and about the industry as a whole, I believe there is value in this work and that good can come even from the most tragic moments of life. After all, death is a part of this life and it touches everyone. I hope the business part of funerals continues to improve and that the Lord continues to work wonders in the spiritual part. By His grace, I will work in the human part.
For now, I will do laundry and enjoy this day.
