I greeted the elderly lady
Sitting in the pew in front
Of me at church,
Making small talk.
Her smile was warm, but
I discovered her heart
Held pain.
Her only daughter died
Six years before on
The lady's birthday.
"We were very close,"
The mother said.
In three more years her
Grandson and husband
Were gone too.
She carried a lot of grief
On this meant-to-be happy
Day.
But her wise words,
A result of her wounding,
Encouraged me.
"How have you managed?"
I asked.
"Only with Jesus' help," she
Said. "He gets me
Through."
She wished the Lord
Had taken her too,
But she guessed He
Still had work for her
To do.
She was right.
Her task today was
To lift me up on a
Poignant Mother's Day.