Plans and Interruptions
It is said that life is what happens while you’re making other plans. Very often, life is found in the interruptions that seem overwhelming: your son takes his own life, leaving behind a financial trainwreck for his unprepared children, his aging parents, and his siblings to sort out. All the survivors already had full plates and plans, but creditors have valid claims and there’s probate: legal fees and court costs cut into whatever assets may or may not exceed the indebtedness. So, plans get put on hold, vacation time is repurposed, and life is found in the interruptions. Grief, itself a different kind of interruption, will just have to wait. And then “church” happens. People gather round with words, shared tears, hugs, food, prayers, and time, willingly setting their own plans aside and living with you in the interruptions. They even open their wallets to offer contingency funds. But life doesn’t stop. It’s not put on hold. Life co...