You'll Be In My Heart

“Love is as strong as death.”

~Song of Solomon 8:6a [NASB]

As a child, I was terrified by the thought of eternity.  Not that I thought about it all the time, mind you.  I tried very hard not to think about it.  But when my mind had a mind of its own, the thought of eternity scared me.  How can there be no end to something?  In human life, there is always an end to almost everything.  The thought of time stretching on, and on, and on, and on… was somehow far more frightening than the “end” that is death.

When I think of eternity now, there is mystery, certainly, but there is no fear.  Of course not, you would say – you are an adult and have “put away childish things.”   That is true, but that is not the reason I so look forward to the unending stretch of forever.  I have someone I want to talk to – a conversation that will take at least an eternity, if not longer: my precious father.

My dad died on February 27, 2006.  So many things have happened in my life and the lives of his granddaughters – it would take forever to tell him everything: graduations, a wedding, cancer, a grand piano, new jobs, the purchase of a home [his greatest wish for me], and so much more.  If your particular theology includes the idea that Dad has been watching me ever since 2006, that would not make a bit of difference.  I have a longing—a need, to talk to him about everything.  Those of you who have ever heard me tell a story know my penchant for infinite detail.  Dad would be listening for a long, long time.

Recently, I [again] played musical cars with one of my girls, and I am now driving my father’s truck.  I think of him every time I take it for a spin. I think of him when Arizona is front page news.  I think of him when partisan politics rise to wipe out common sense.  I often laugh out loud, because I know exactly what he would say.  King Solomon understood that the bonds of affection remain strong even in the valley of the shadow of death.  Love never dies.

You’ll be in my heart; yes, you’ll be in my heart

From this day on, now and forevermore.

You’ll be in my heart, no matter what they say,

You’ll be here in my heart always.

   ~Phil Collins