"Mamma Always Said" - by Rev. Weldon Bares

A close friend of mine recently passed away. She was the director of the nursery at a previous church. She blessed the lives of so many in her work.

We became good friends over the years, bonding through so many conversations and texts. Most of our talks centered around the Dallas Cowboys. We shared every high and low of the season like teammates on the sidelines.

But it wasn’t just football. We talked/texted about other things in life: family, work, faith.

She faithfully watched our worship services online and would always offer words of encouragement.

She was sick for several years, but she fought the specter of death with every weapon in her arsenal. I mean, she was a warrior who refused to give up. But eventually her body just wore out and she died.

I will miss LaDonna so much. Her absence is something that will hit me even harder when football season starts. We shared that part of our lives. It was our thing. I can already imagine those moments when the Cowboys throw an interception at the worst possible time, or when they pull off a miracle touchdown in the final seconds. That is when I will instinctively reach for my phone to text or call her.

And then I’ll remember she’s not there, and that silence will be loud. Football just won’t be the same without her. Many things won’t be the same.

I am so thankful that her suffering is over. I know she is in a much better place than we can’t even begin to imagine.

Yesterday, I saw her name and cell number on my “Favorites” list on my phone. I don’t have the heart to delete it.

One of my favorite movies is “Forrest Gump.” Towards the end of the movie, Forrest visited the grave of his close friend, Jenny. He said, “Mamma always said, ‘Dying is a part of life.’ But I sure wish it wasn’t.”

I feel the same way, Forrest, I really do.