Not Entirely Farewell

Can it be possible that the pastor of the church where I serve as minister of music is really leaving? Yes, she has been promoted to district superintendent of another NYS area. Well deserved I say. Sherri has been a wonderful, supportive, caring pastor with whom I have totally enjoyed working. I will truly miss her smile and her no nonsense approach to faith and life.

Planning worship with Sherri was a delight. Our minds seem to travel along the same paths, and the synergy in brainstorming was so refreshing. I never had to worry whether I was stepping out of bounds. Sherri always understood that my ideas are take it or leave propositions and that I would never consider forcing my ideas on anyone. She knew what to follow up on and what to leave in the dust.

My one regret is that we never got to spend much time together. Our two worlds don't intersect much and many times we just knew what the other had in mind and followed through. She never got distressed when I had to leave things until the last minute, and handled my struggles to do more on short notice with grace and aplomb.

I wanted to somehow tell her how significant she has been to me in my spiritual growth, to tell others what a joy it has been working with her. As I thought of times I could recall in tribute, one example came shining through. When I was headed into chemo, Sherri was there with me. She gifted me with practical comforting things - a fleece blanket, warm pink socks, a spacious sturdy pink cloth bag. More importantly, she sat with me through the early infusions, not being thrown when the benadryl knocked me out. Her presence helped me stay steady in the face of the unknown and scary.

Faithful presence. It is so important in life. How meaningful to have someone you can count on be there with you. She came with me into the biopsy room when they were planning on sticking a probe down my throat and snipping pieces of lymph tissue through the lining of my stomach. I was not a little distraught about that. She stood at the foot of the gurney and held my ankles, out of the way of the medical people, but the touch held my panic levels down to a dull roar.

Not many friends will do that for you, much less your pastor! How rare and precious her caring heart and willingness to climb down in the trenches and do whatever it may take. I watched her with amazement as she stood by her people through the hard times. When one of her congregation passed away, she was sorrowful for weeks as if it had been her own family member.

As well, her care to set the communion table in an aesthetically pleasing way, to bring the gentle touch of tasteful decor into the experience of the Lord's supper. She always brought a richer experience not only at communion time, but also for each of the liturgical seasons. How blessed I am to have worked with this extraordinary woman! I will miss her decorations.

I know I shall see her again, hopefully in this world. My wish is that we will find time to meet for lunch without the encumbrance of needing to get something done; that we will finally be able to just be sisters who enjoy spending quiet times together comparing notes.