On my route to school I always pass
by this cemetery and have always found myself intrigued to go inside for my
morning walk. Normally I walk around my neighborhood park but this particular
morning I decided that I would take my walk at the cemetery instead. God has a unique way of doing things
sometimes. He allows us to cross paths with people for reasons that we may not
always be aware of. I never even walked like I had planned; instead, I had the pleasure of meeting such a mild-mannered woman named Mrs. Bertha Pina.
Here is my story:
When I
parked inside, I could hardly get out of my car. I’ve never visited a cemetery
and the emotions took over me. I thought about loved ones that I had lost and I
was overwhelmed with grief.
Once I gathered myself I proceeded to pick my path in which I would walk. I only made it about 50
steps before I noticed such an immaculate grave site that I just had to stop and admire it.
It was approximately 20
feet from where Mrs. Pena was swapping out flowers on her loved one’s grave. I sat graveside in the grass admiring the site I was in front of, reflecting on the life and memories of my loved ones that had passed, also while I watched Mrs. Pena. She meticulously took her time as she decorated the grave site, picked up any trash near it and changed the color theme of the flowers.
Somehow, sitting there watching her helped
me understand why people visited grave sites that I never understood before. It was peaceful and therapeutic. As I sat there something came over me. It was a
wailing cry deep down on the inside, which subsequently led to a place of
serenity. It was like I could feel God’s presence all around me; I could hear
his voice and I felt comforted, even through my weeping. I used to be fearful
of cemeteries, probably because of all the creepy things that I had seen in
movies but this experience different than I had imagined.
I got a chance to speak with Mrs.
Pena and through conversation I learned from her that her son died from Leukemia; a blood cancer that begins
in bone marrow. He was only 23 years old. She said she and her husband visits
his site 2-3 times a week and through her visits she has met other friends
around her son’s grave, in which she finds solace. I was so touched by her humbleness
and explained to her how watching her had inspired me to share my experience
with you guys. After chatting with Mrs. Pena (in which she gave me permission
to use her in my story), it just warmed my heart to see her stop and yet
another grave site to swap out flowers for someone else’s loved one. 
After she left I just sat there staring into the sky, it was beautiful that morning. I began to shed tears and sobs that I knew only God understood. I felt closeness with Him that I hadn’t felt in
long time. I kept thinking to myself, what
happened to me today? What is my obsession and association with this cemetery?
And suddenly it hit me. The scripture that popped into my head was 1 Thessalonians 4:16- "For
the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice
of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ
will rise first." While being in that cemetery I was able to put some things into perspective. All my life,
I have always found myself engaged with the thought of death. For most, including
myself, it makes us reevaluate our own lives and the things we cherish. One
thought that dominates my mind when I think of death, knowing that I still
have a chance to get it right. I still have a chance that others don’t have....to
live my life according to His word.
When I think of those who have
passed on, I think they will soon be at
the seat of judgment, as they have exhausted all of their opportunities. I can only
hope that they made the right decision while they had a chance and God has mercy on their soul. By the grace of God, we (for
those still living) still have the opportunity to make the choice where we will
spend eternity. The human brain cannot comprehend eternity. I know I have a
hard time fathoming it; I think about it all the time. For those who still
cannot grasp it, my advice to you would be to go visit a cemetery.
