See You There

As each year passes, I find myself attending more funerals. I don’t love going to funerals, but I do want to support people at such a sad time. It’s an honor and a privilege to be present to help someone celebrate their loved one. I felt that prior to the pandemic, but the sad empty goodbyes of that time made me even more determined to get to funerals when I can.

So, when I can be, I’m there—at the funeral home or the church or graveside. I never know what to say, but I know how to be present. And I have to hope that that’s enough.

A few months ago, one of our former neighbors passed away. When I was a child, we lived next door to him and his family for years, and I remembered him as a kind, thoughtful man. He was the type of person you could ask to help with an overflowing toilet, and he’d arrive immediately, stepping breezily over the piles of toys in the hallway without any ounce of judgment.

My parents and I went to the funeral Mass together and saw dozens of people we hadn’t seen in years. We listened to stories of this man we remembered, and—as often happens—I thought about how I only knew one facet of his life. As a child, I didn’t know what he did professionally. I saw him simply as a father and a neighbor. Sometimes funerals help you see a person more fully, recognizing their contributions that extended beyond the kindnesses and conversations you remember.

As we were approaching the end of the Mass, the priest was blessing the casket and saying the final prayers. At one point during the blessing, the priest mentioned heaven. My father leaned over and whispered to me, “See you there.”

For a moment, it took my breath away. See you there. Of course, I hope we will see our friend again in heaven. I hope I will see all my family and friends there one day. I have faith we can and will all be together to enjoy eternal life. Sometimes it feels so distant, and sometimes it feels as if it’s just around the corner.

See you there.

There’s nothing like a funeral to remind us that life on earth has an end. And there’s nothing like a funeral to awaken in us a deeper hope that we will experience life after death, with God and those we love, in heaven. Amidst all the sadness and grief of losing someone you love, what a gift to know that we can live in hope and conviction that this is not the end. Our faith assures us that earth is not our home, that heaven is within reach, and that our life here gives just a taste of the wonders that we will discover when we go home to God.

“Raise up your eyes often to heaven and see that this life is only a passage to eternity,” St. Francis de Sales said.

So, we continue on, living and loving and holding onto hope that there is something even greater, something even deeper, something even richer than what we’re experiencing here on earth today. With hope and joy, let’s keep striving for heaven.

See you there.

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