Besides this earth.....

"Besides this earth, and besides the race of men, there is an invisible world and a kingdom of spirits: that world is 'round us, for it is everywhere; and those spirits watch us, for they are commissioned to guard us; and if we were dying in pain and shame, if scorn smote us on all sides, and hatred crushed us, angels see our tortures, recognise our innocence (if innocent we be: .......), and God waits only the separation of spirit from flesh to crown us with a full reward. Why, then, should we ever sink overwhelmed with distress, when life is so soon over, and death is so certain an entrance to happiness-- to glory?"
...from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

My Mom-in-law passed away last Wednesday; we had a memorial service for her yesterday. We're kind of tired and worn out. She was my other mother; sweet and loving. Thankfully, we got lots of time with her. My sisters-in-law are not like us. They looked so puzzled when I would come over and climb onto the bed with Dena and hold her and tell her why I loved her. Dena certainly had no problem with it. My husband's sisters are more concerned with appearances....is the house completely clean and together? Is everything everywhere FOLDED?? ;-)


Then, we came home to a neighbor grousing about a tree branch overhanging his yard, sniping at me because I had asked him if he wanted it removed a few weeks ago. That project unfortunately stalled with Dena's hospitalization, re-hospitalization and death. Legally, he has always had the right to remove the branch from his property line....and I'm not responsible for it, nor liable for any debris, etc., from a healthy tree. I was planning on having it removed as a neighborly thing...and at our expense. He really didn't give a damn that we'd had a rough month. He just cared about his pool. I let all of that drench me with more guilt....my house needs a good cleaning; I'm behind in my work because of my MIL, the big mural and a hanging-on case of bronchitis; our yard needs work, etc. I'm trying not to get down about it all. Oh. Too late.

But then, this morning, a friend sent me this quote from Jane Eyre. She had just picked up the book and read it again this last week. This passage jumped out at her. I'd never really paid attention to it til now...and I know she sent it because it was for the both of us at this time. It's wonderful. Maybe it's for you, too, as well. Thank you all for your sweet prayers and comments! :-)