This is the eulogy that I wrote in the middle of the night and read at my Mom’s funeral on December 20th, 2010.\u00a0 I have split it into 2 parts:<\/p>\n
How does one describe Carole Pearce?\u00a0 I think everyone here could come up with some pretty good stories.\u00a0 But, I think in the end we would all agree on some basic truths about Mom.\u00a0 Faith, Family and Humor.<\/p>\n
Mom\u2019s faith led her down many paths, some led to joy and some led to incredible pain.\u00a0 She trusted that God had a plan, even if he wasn\u2019t willing to share the plan with her.\u00a0 Mom had a faith-filled upbringing that I believe gave her strength when she needed it.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t just take the strength, she lived her life in a way that showed where her strength came from.\u00a0 She never pretended to live without God\u2019s help and intervention.\u00a0 She even went against her life-long creed, \u201cI will never marry a farmer.\u201d\u00a0 She trusted that it was the right thing to do.\u00a0 And the decision to marry my Dad led to new and exciting experiences, like driving a grain truck down a steep hill towards a slough; with my Dad guiding her, and possibly having a few chuckles.\u00a0 She had an incredible life ahead of her with everything she could have ever hoped for.\u00a0 She had been faithful and it had come back to her.<\/p>\n
Then after just 3 years it all exploded and her life was never to be the same.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure she questioned why many, many times.\u00a0 But, she still trusted God to bring her through.\u00a0 She had insurmountable challenges in the first 6 months with trials, lawyers, farming, an auction sale, a toddler and an infant.\u00a0 She had unified support from family and the community that she knew was sent by God to help her through.\u00a0\u00a0 She also used her experience to help others.\u00a0 She wrote letters of forgiveness and had open communication with men who were her potential enemies.\u00a0 Partly due to Mom\u2019s generosity of spirit, both of these men are now Christians.\u00a0 One is a full time councilor in a halfway house; the other is still working out the kinks but is trying.\u00a0 Mom went where she felt she was needed to speak and inspire people to face their fears and their enemies.<\/p>\n
Since Mom became sick in June of 2009 she began to pray like never before.\u00a0 She would wake in the night in the hospital and whoever popped into her mind she would pray for them.\u00a0 She felt she still had purpose as long as she could pray and tell people what God had done for her.\u00a0 In her last few weeks she was unable to get out of bed or control much of her body.\u00a0 But she could pray.\u00a0 We would hear her praying all times of the day and night.\u00a0 Sometimes it sounded like a conversation and she would tell me, \u201cI\u2019ve been talking to God today.\u201d\u00a0 And I would say,\u201dAnd what did He have to say.\u201d \u00a0Her answer would vary but it always came down to, \u201cHe knows everything so I don\u2019t have to.\u201d\u00a0 Her last audible word was \u201cAmen\u201d in the middle of last Wednesday night.<\/p>\n
Music became her refuge in the hospital and at home this past year.\u00a0 She loved music.\u00a0 She grew up surrounded by music and married into a musical family.\u00a0 One of her favorite memories of my Dad was when he would go to the nursing home with his guitar on a quiet afternoon and he would sing for the residents.\u00a0 So, we made sure she had music 24 hours a day, if necessary.\u00a0 It helped give her peace.\u00a0 And some of her favorites were played during the viewing tonight.<\/p>\n
Mom used her gift of sewing to bring clothing and smiles to the needy.\u00a0 Last year she sent children\u2019s t-shirts to a Northern reserve as well as to Mexico.\u00a0 She finished the last one right before her first visit to the hospital.\u00a0 This year she really got into making the little animals that we have on display.\u00a0 She would give them to babies at church and anyone that she knew that needed a cuddle, even a few adults.\u00a0 The last batch she made went in the Christmas shoe boxes to Haiti in November.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
This is the eulogy that I wrote in the middle of the night and read at my Mom’s funeral on December 20th, 2010.\u00a0 I have split it into 2 parts: How does one describe Carole Pearce?\u00a0 I think everyone here … Continue reading