"So...How was the Funeral?"

Lots of folks tried to ask me about the funeral at church and elsewhere over the weekend. I mean, what do you say, "How was the funeral?" It sounds kind of trite, really.

But in answer to the awkward question, the funeral was about as good as a funeral can get. The Lord was worshipped and Jason was remembered, and not the other way around. I hope that my own funeral might find this formula as well as Saturday's did.

News reported that a couple thousand people came for the wake on Friday night--for six hours people came to pay their respects and say good-bye. I just went for the funeral, they said about a thousand were there for that.

It was good for me to be there. I made some good contacts with students that I'd been thinking about and praying for that I hadn't seen yet. It's funny, too, how the social dynamics change in a situation like that. Students that might have avoided me in other contexts because they've basically disappeared from InterVarsity over the course of the year came and sought me out, were eager just to make contact and hug and say hello. A few of them I'm eager to follow-up with to make sure that they're processing things okay, healing in the aftermath of all of this.

It was good to say good-bye to Jason. I only teared up a couple times. Once when the parents came in. The second time was when his brother (about 20 years his elder) shared on behalf of the family. He looked so much like Jason, and sounded so much like him, it just brought back lots of memories.

Palm Sunday at church we sang lots of songs with "heavenly" images. I found myself weeping again, but I think joyfully this time. Joyfully, and exhaustedly, probably.