Unforgettable

There are people in this life that you know you will never forget....no matter how much time passes.

I will never forget Mrs. Kampenkel, my 2nd grade teacher. This sweet lady was the quintessential "old lady teacher." Seriously. I suspect she was younger than I think. But in my mind's eye, she had to have been 80 years old -- and she taught a class full of 2nd graders back in 19. . . (We won't go there) There was nothing extraordinary about her--except for the fact that she was a more "seasoned" teacher, and we were 2nd graders. Seriously, ya'll. . .spend some time with 19 or 20 second graders. You'll see what I mean.

I will never forget Mrs. Wells, my first piano teacher. She taught in her basement. Her kitchen -- you had to walk past its entrance to get to her basement steps -- was always a mess. But, she always had dinner in the oven. I don't know how many piano and organ students she had, but the 1-block walk to her house, and the half-hour spent in her music room each week was always so special for me. She understood me. She knew that although I could read music, I could feel it. She let me feel it. She let me express it. That's a gift.

I will never forget Lily Mae Sample. I worked with her at my first job--the Zondervan Family Bookstore in the Lincoln Mall. She was one of the coolest ladies I have ever known. She worked days, and occasional evenings. I worked evenings and Saturdays. We really enjoyed the times we got to work together. She was an avid fan of Grace Livingston Hill books. She had read them all. She loved cardinals. She had grandchildren that she loved and doted over. She was a widow--and talked about her husband, George, every day. She worried about me as I went off to college. She even sent me letters while I was away. She died while I was away at school. I was home on break when she died.

I will never forget Becky Jones. She attended our church (here) about 8 years ago. Becky had the most exhuberant spirit when it came to worship. She danced. She danced to our worship songs. It wasn't obnoxious. It wasn't for show. She was praising God in her own way--and it touched hearts. It freaked a few people out, too, admittedly. But, it changed my view of worship. Becky died just a couple of years after coming to our church. I remember the morning she died. It was a Sunday. We were in the middle of our worship service--suddenly, Sue, our pastor's wife, walked up to the podium, and handed Bob a note. We all knew what the note said. Becky had been ushered to heaven while we were singing. And, I truly believe that as she ascended to heaven, she was able to hear us. I really believe that.

Tonight, another unforgettable friend received her heavenly reward. Beverly Zoppa was another one of those people who just couldn't sit down when she worshipped. She danced. She swayed. She lifted her hands in absolute surrender and worship. It was so beautiful. It was so heartfelt. It was so moving. . . . and now, she's doing it around the throne. She's not bound by a body racked with cancer. She's not in pain. She has no fear. She has no concerns about the temporary (meaningless) things of this world. She is with Jesus.

Tonight, at choir practice, we sang this really cool song. . ."I'm Not Ashamed" which has this awesome carribbean feel to it. We are scheduled to sing it in a couple weeks, so I was really pushing them to get it right tonight. Sometime in between our first run-through and the third (which winded us all) Mom called Dad's phone with the news that Bev had died.

We stopped practice immediately, and prayed. I'm not sure how I did it. . .but I led in prayer. I'm not one of those people who can cry and do anything else at the same time. But tonight, just for a few minutes, I kept it together long enough to pray. Then, we went back to practice. I did allright--although a couple of times, I nearly lost it as we sang.

Beverly is survived by a devoted husband, Dave, and a daughter and son. She has two grandchildren--one is in Caroline's Sunday School class. She is also going to be memorialized by a church family that loves her very, very much. We will miss her more than we will ever realize. But, tonight we're celebrating with her.

So, I'm remembering some unforgettable ladies tonight. I have more. I could write volumes about my grandmothers, and some of the women I knew growing up. But, I'm done typing for the night. I am ready for a little down time. . . there's a book to read, some more sewing to do, or some other "non-computer" activity that will occupy my hands and mind while my heart hurts.