Sitting on the edge of Whitefish Lake...imagining stepping just beyond the veil of this world and into the vast color of the next...

...looking forward to one day seeing my mom again...

...in the unknowable beauty that is to be!

My mom and dad raised five kids in the Midwest, in a way that influenced us to learn respect and honor for others...in such a manner that we were taught about hope in something beyond ourselves, in someone beyond ourselves.

Two very truly beautiful people that influenced us to learn to care about others, and to put others first.

My mom loved to express herself through her artwork.  Of her favorite forms of artistic passion would definitely have to include her painting captured images from the Midwest.  Growing up I remember countless journeys out with my mom and dad, many accompanied by her point-n-shoot camera.  Mom would find the most beautiful cloud formations and stop to take in the vista.

Nothing less were her efforts than capturing those billowing mountainous masses of white and grey staging the azure vault that rises high above the earth (in other words, she loved taking pictures of clouds – I always was too wordy).

After having her images developed she would incorporate those beautiful skies into her paintings.

She would turn to me and simply remind me, “Kevin, you have to have an interesting sky.” And so it was.

As mom grew older, she learned that she was suffering from macular degeneration – a disease that unfortunately is incurable and happens to be the leading cause for loss of vision.  She gradually was losing her ability to see clearly and eventually losing elements of color in her vision. It was heartbreaking to see her lose that ability to see clearly.

My mom passed away in 2009, yet she had lived such a full life – a life of love and honor.  And I still miss her greatly.

When I sit at places such as this, under a magnificent sky that overshadows the earth, I find that I am ever reminded of my mom and dad’s relentless beauty and am filled with hope for the day I see them again.

I was reminded of J.R.R. Tolkein’s writings in the Return Of The King – when Gandalf speaks with such certain hope in response to Pippin’s concerns about eminent death.  Gandalf simply replies, “End? No, the journey doesn’t end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all turns to silver glass, and then you see it.” – “White shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.”

It is moments like this that I am resounding with absolute certainty that I will one day see them again beyond this grey veil.

We never do know how much time we have...
...what tomorrow may bring...
...what lies just beyond the grey veil...

May you be reminded of something wonderful about the journey that you are on...

… and may you find that it is truly beautiful.
Wherever you are on the in-between, cherish it today!