Michael Williams,
Gardener at The Bield,
2011-2021,
In memoriam.
Home coming.
Mike died in the evening of 7 March.
I learnt of it next morning.
Like a blow to the heart
couldn’t breathe
Words faltered.
We’d agreed to meet on 8 March
Details of a funeral to sort
And preparation for Mike’s presence
At the planting of a wood
Of his design
Long-agreed, community would start
planting 9 March
1500 trees to go in
All carefully planned
where and how,
equipment ready
Mike departed before then
to go home
expectant and with a smile
he went; he knew
St Paul tells us
in a letter to the believers in Corinth
That there is resurrection, and we will be Given a new body
He uses gardening language
“What you sow [...]
is not the body which is to be,
but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat
[...] God gives it a body as he has chosen,
and to each kind of seed its own body.”
Grieving, it was hard
Like driving a car up a steep hill
in 1st gear, handbrake
left on un-noticed
It was hard to collect enough thoughts
to take the service
afraid to let Mike down
aware of own fragility
Asked friends to pray for us
And like magic
(Graceful answer
to prayer feels magical!)
calm descended
and Mike was honoured and celebrated
with dignity, love and warmth
We laughed recollecting
his subtle humour
smiled as we thought of his presence
changed but still Mike
Teared up as we listened to
“Abide with me”
And nodded in recognition
as the final lyrics he’d requested
filled the room,
“Hey”, I said, “you can keep my things,
They’ve come to take me home.”
Robin
Kommentare