THIS SEVERE MERCY

This severe mercy* has come to our lives,

painful & overwhelming

surreal & outrageous.

A mixture of emotions,

and a numbness, too.

A bouncing back & forth

between needing to be held

& needing to be alone.

The severity of the illness,

the pain, the suffering

was way too real.

But the mercy in the midst of it

was real, too.

There is mercy for her -

no more suffering!

A perfect body &

walking with her Beloved

amidst celestial beauty

& eternal understanding.

There is mercy for us, too,

for He is with us.

Consoling, loving, holding

Blessing us through others

Filling our hearts with stories

that continue to trickle in 

Of her lovely life, of her impact.

We move away from the severe

and embrace the mercy.

Yet they still seem to find each other

like twins who have known togetherness

far too long.

We are faced with both...

and we weep, trying to accept 

This severity

and this mercy

which have come into our lives.

*“That death, so full of suffering for us both, suffering that still overwhelmed my life, was yet a severe mercy. A mercy as severe as death, a severity as merciful as love.” 

― Sheldon Vanauken, A Severe Mercy 

Photo & artwork by:  Stephen B. Whatley