Thankful Thursday

I'm going to a viewing tonight.

I have a love/hate relationship with death of people I know and love.

I love knowing they've finished and they're home, often to meet up with people they've missed for years. It makes me wonder how I'll feel when I've finished and when I get to go back. It's an exhilarating and terrifying feeling all at once.

I hate the sadness. Even at funerals of people I barely knew, I'm sure to cry. And you know- I can cry harder and with less triggers than most! I have yet to attend a funeral where I actually have some part in it. It's not just the sadness that makes me cry. It's also the joy of knowing where they are and of the life lived. Combine the sadness and the joy and I'm a basket case! I am glad that I have a strong family full of people that can handle the funeral program while I sob. Right now, I'm extremely thankful that I don't have to deal with that right now! If any family is reading this, know right now: you're not allowed to die for a long time!

I am thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am thankful for the knowledge I have of God's Plan of Happiness. I am thankful that my family is healthy and whole. I'm thankful that I can attend this viewing tonight with the reassurance that he's just over on the other side. I can't imagine facing the death of a loved one without that knowledge; I think I'd die from the sorrow if I didn't. But that thought reminds me of when a friend, whose daughter died just last year, wondered how people without a knowledge of the Savior could make it through the loss of a loved one until he realized that it's not possible. Everyone has the comfort of the Savior during that, whether they believe in Him or not because it's just not possible to get through it without Him.

I think he's right.

What are you thankful for today?