Smelling the Flowers

My three year-old daughter repeated one request the whole evening. "Let's go smell the flowers."


My wife would take her over to where the flowers were, and Hannah would sniff away. But if you watched her closely you cold see her peaking out of the corner of her eye at the lady who was laying in the box.

I wonder about what she thinks. I worry about what she thinks. In my vocation, there will be many funerals and visitations to attend. I'm concerned about how my kids will handle it.

This was not someone she knew, really. But at the end of the week there will be a funeral for Eddie Keel, a 94 year-old man I will be writing on later, that she will certainly recognize.

I'd like to shelter her from this. She is extremely compassionate, and I worry about how this will shape her.

Add to this that many of the people closest to her are senior members of the church. How do I prepare her for the day when one of her Pa Pa's die?