Category Archives: Death & Dying

The Aftermath of Tragedy

Posted on January 29, 2014 by Doc Arnett

I think that deep down, a lot of us wish God would “guide” every decision we make so that we would always make perfect ones and life would be blissful and we’d never screw up and things would be just perfect. Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged bad things good people, calamity, explanation of tragedy, God is at work for good, injustice, life isn't fair, tragedy, unfairness | Comments Off

In Memory of Juanita Harrison

Posted on December 24, 2013 by Doc Arnett

But what was miraculous in my adolescent eyes was that the Harrison children clearly delighted in their parents and cheerfully adopted their best traits. Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Christian Devotions, Death & Dying, Family, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged Antioch Church of Christ, Browns Grove KY, eulogy, Jack Harrison, Juanita Harrison, memory | Comments Off

A Difficult Phrasing

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Doc Arnett

We live in a world of both blessing and cursing. Joy and heartache often tumble in on each other. One grandchild is born, another, yet unborn, dies. Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged birth, celebration, death, joy, miscarriage, pain, Sam Arnett, Sara Jane Arnett, sorrow, Susan Jane Arnett | Comments Off

In Memory of Willow Long

Posted on September 11, 2013 by Doc Arnett

Somewhere inside us,
in that place where we keep such things
that we really don’t want to face
but must acknowledge,
we store the awareness
that the awful things that happen to others
could happen to someone we know.
Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Metaphysical Reflection, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged Amber Alert, Ciara DeRyke, family, horror, Justin DeRyke, missing child, murder, murdered child, Watson Illinois, Willow Long | Comments Off

Grizzly Encounter

Posted on August 27, 2013 by Doc Arnett

They first saw the grizzly, upwind and upslope of them, from nearly a half-mile away. They knew right away it had seen them, too. Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Metaphysical Reflection, Nature, Spiritual Contemplation, Sports | Tagged Alaskan, angels, bear attack, caribou, caribou hunting, close call, danger, deliverance, grizzly, grizzly encounter, hunting, rainbow | Comments Off

Finishing Touches

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Doc Arnett

Two months ago,
our grey roan Foxtrotter mare
seemed more than ready
for another season of trails
and training grandkids to groom and ride.
Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Farming, Metaphysical Reflection, Nature, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged disease, euthanasia, euthinizing horse, foxtrotter, mare, old horse, putting down horse, vet, veterinarian | Comments Off

Of Wind and Work

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Doc Arnett

On the morning of her last day,
I tried to mulch the newly seeded lawn
on the west side of the house Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Gardening, Metaphysical Reflection, Nature, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation, Work | Tagged Betty Prescher, landscaping, mulching, seeding grass, straw | Comments Off

Gettin’ Ready

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Doc Arnett

I’ve held the hands
of those whose final hours
were upon them,
prayed with their families
in that time of groaning and grieving. Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Metaphysical Reflection, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged acceptance, comfort, grieving, loss | Comments Off

The Pastor’s Visit

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Doc Arnett

She’s in remarkably good health for a dying woman:
nothing really hurts,
everything else works
with both mind and body.
Continue reading →

Posted in Aging, Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Metaphysical Reflection, Nature, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged lung disease, lung function, pastoral counseling, shut-in | 1 Comment

Faith, Fear & the Nearness of Eternity

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Doc Arnett

In the howling chillness of the night,
a thin skin of ice formed
un-smoothly on the surface
of the rainwater tub. Continue reading →

Posted in Christian Devotions, Christian Living, Death & Dying, Family, Metaphysical Reflection, Nature, Poetry, Relationships, Spiritual Contemplation | Tagged attitude, bombing, Boston, Boston Marathon, choices, fertilizer plant explosion, response, self-pity, Texas, West | Comments Off