An Entry on My "After the Bucket List"

I had forgotten that Uncle Ray and I shared the same name. I always knew him as "Uncle Ray." His full name was Howard Ray Hargrove. He was Luther Howard Hargrove's eldest son, and I was the oldest grandchild, so we both ended up with Luke's--that what he went by--middle name. I'd like to think I've kept it a good name. I know my uncle did. He was my mom's little brother. He was the last of her family. All my aunts and uncles are gone, now. That's how life is down here. Time relentlessly erodes even granite, and we humans are much more fragile. James reminds us that we "are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away" (Jas 4:14). Uncle Ray restored old cars, he looked better than new long after others of that vintage had been crushed and recycled. Keeping an old human young isn't as easy. I remember when I was a youngster my family would travel five-hundred miles to the south to visit extended family. We'd always stop to see Uncle Ray and Aunt Jennie Lou. I don't think there was a single time that we went to their house without having a batch of home made ice cream. Uncle Ray was seventeen years older than me, so, when as a little guy, I'd visit Grandpa and Grandma's house he was still living at home. Before he joined the Army he worked on the farm with his dad. He took delight in trying to get me to "walk like a farmer." According to him, I never got it right. The last time I saw Uncle Ray was a few months after Aunt Jennie Lou had died. She was the epitome of Southern charm and hospitality and clearly the love of his life.  I had never talked to my Uncle about the Lord. Talking about Aunt Jennie Lou and her kindness and grace led naturally to a discussion of that which matters supremely. I look back on that conversation with encouragement. I figure in a while I'll go for a walk with my uncle. We'll both walk like farmers. He'll approve. We'll both laugh. We'll find a comfortable place, and we'll crank out a great batch of heaven-made ice cream. I figure even in heaven it'll be better if you actually turn the crank. Some people have a bucket-list. I'm developing an after-the-bucket-list. Ice cream with Uncle Ray is definitely on it. It's STTA (Something To Think About).    Kathy in Uncle Ray's '57 T'bird