The Yearning

Another choir post.  I know, I know.  But I can't help it. :)
Tonite was our first Christmas concert.  One of my favorite songs isn't actually a Christmas song.  It's called The Yearning.  It is about our yearning for Christ.  My heart swells when we sing this song, it's so amazing.  I was bummed because I got a major tickle in my throat just before this song, so I couldn't actually sing it.  At all.  Or the next song, and most of the next song.  Gah!  It was so frustrating because if I started singing the tickle would come back so I had to just fake it until I knew it was gone.  I was kind of sad because my voice wasn't included in The Yearning, but it was nice to listen to it.
After our concert, we went to sing for one of the choir member's mother.  She has terminal cancer-breast, bone, brain, liver.  She slept all day just to have enough energy to come out and listen to us.  I spent 30 min. with her and her husband and could tell she is a gem.  The kind of woman that is gracious and loving to everyone she meets, even in her suffering.  Very much the heart of this family.  I could picture in my mind her husband sitting there thinking, "What in the world am I going to do without this woman?"  Though this family was face to face with this intense trial, and I could tell that though there is sadness at the prospect of being separated by death, there was not fear.  There was strong faith holding them together like glue.  My voice was fine and I was able to sing The Yearning for them.  It meant so much to me to be singing and sharing the beautiful spirit that was there with this family.