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laughter

We just got home from the funeral of a long-time friend. Well, it was actually a memorial service. His funeral will be in his hometown tomorrow, but the family held a memorial service here in Garner at the church they've attended for the last 50 something years.

Mr. Jack worked at the US Dept of Agriculture in Washington DC for many years. Like many people, he was gone during the week and commuted home on the weekends. Several of his co-workers spoke at the service today, and one had us all in shocked laughter.

Like most conservative Baptists, Free Will Baptists are tee-totalers. The speaker made the comment that he didn't know why he and Jack were friends, but they always had been. He laughed about how Mr. Jack would choose a restaurant that served seafood and sweet tea, but no alchohol, and how he'd always try to get it changed to a different restaurant. And of course, Mr. Jack didn't smoke, either and this paticular friend did. He shared a lot of other work and family memories, but this one about alcohol, which he referenced quite a bit throughout his talk, had everyone both shocked and laughing at the same time.

Saying goodbye is never easy, and my heart hurts for my friends and the adjustments that are ahead of them. But I'm so thankful for the positive memories they've had over the years, and how blessed they are to have had a husband/dad who taught them the truth, whether they've accepted it or not.

Mr. Jack wasn't perfect. He never pretended to be. But he was a good friend. I hope when it's my time to go that people will remember my positive traits much more than my negative ones, and that my family will find healing through memories that bring laughter. After all, Proverbs says laughter is better than medicine, right?

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