I went to another funeral mass today, ma.
Yes.
One more.

I met his wife earlier this year. She didn’t know me, but when she heard that you were gone, she gave me the tightest of hugs and her eyes filled with tears although she spoke words of encouragement.
Months later, she spoke of her husband’s diagnosis during a retreat. She broke down and all of us with her. Her gorgeous, ever present smile belied her heavy heart. The news was a shock to us.
He battled on for months. Always there for Sunday mass with his family. Until he wasn’t.
His brave little girls played for him. Their whole group played. It was so touching to watch 20 little violinists pay tribute to their friend’s dad with their music. The notes filled the silent church like little winged angels rising to the clouds. Innocent and pure. He would have been beaming with joy.
I never had a chance to converse with Ivan. Just a “Hello, how are you?”. I always received a genuine smile from him. I saw how he treated his wife and two kids though. You knew there was love. So much love.
You might run into him today. Say hello. Let him know that his funeral mass was attended by hundreds of friends. There weren’t many dry eyes. Talk to him about his mountaineering adventures. How he walked into a storm. How he was the one his friends relied on without any hesitation. His lovely wife. His precious girls. How he loved. How he lived!

You two will get along so well.

The world has grown poorer. Heaven gets richer by the day.

#SeeYouWhenISeeYou #LettersToMa