A Life Well Lived

Today we say farewell to an amazing woman. Becky Drennon will be laid to rest in a few hours, but her legacy will not die anytime soon. My friends Jennifer and Keith and I met up to pay our respects to her family last night and were surprised, though not very, by the constantly growing line of people who were there to declare just how profoundly Becky had touched their lives. And Dave, her husband, said that the same was true in the afternoon visitation as well.

But we shouldn't have been even a little surprised. If there's one thing that no one who ever met Becky would argue, it's that she was quite possibly the most loving person they ever knew. There are people in this world who have been given an extra portion of love that simply comes pouring out of them onto every person they meet and Becky was one of those people. She was kind and gentle and respectful and supportive and--well, I could go on forever, but we all know there aren't words sufficient to describe the kind of love that Becky had, because it was a Divine Love that transcends description, but is unmistakable when experienced.

I fear I'm rambling, but I, along with everyone else who knew her, am struggling to come to grips with just why she had to go so soon and so suddenly. I think we all agree we weren't ready. And we mourn, not for her, because she is whole and happy and completely pain-free now. We mourn for ourselves, who will never again get to experience that smile, that laugh, those words of encouragement. Except through pictures and video and shared stories, which are wonderful to share, but are pale copies of the genuine article.

I try to come up with metaphors that explain why she had to be taken away from us and bring some comfort. I'm a writer--isn't that what I'm supposed to do? And yet, no analogy suffices. No explanation works, except that, for reasons we'll never know in this life, God wanted to bring her home.

And the true comfort is that she is still here among us, in the persons of her amazing family. Her husband Dave, who shares her quiet strength and loving nature. Her daughters Hannah and Jenny and son Caleb, who not only resemble her physically, but also have that unmistakable something that Becky had. That thing that simply draws people close to them like a magnet. When you meet any of the Drennons, you feel valued. You feel unjudged. You feel loved. Just like you did when you met Becky. And so, in that way, she'll never leave us.

Godspeed Becky Drennon. I can't wait to see you again.