Harriet Estelle Anderson Funeral

Harriet Estelle Anderson Funeral

9/25/04

My sympathy to Vern and all Harriet’s family and friends…

Jesus says, “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest… my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” As people of faith, I hope we take consolation in our belief that Harriet and all her burdens are now restingin the loving arms of Jesus for all eternity.

Those who know and love Harriet, however, are also carrying a burden right now. It is the burden of loss because Harriet is no longer with us in this world. My guess is that the burden doesn’t seem too light right now. So what is this easy yoke and light burden that Jesus is talking to us about?

Harriet’s family custom when they had a problem was to turn to her, so maybe we should look to her example as we struggle our burden today. Even though Harriet battled ongoing illness for much of her adult life, Harriet never complained about that burden. When she first came to Riverview nursing home, she was not happy and let her family know it. But eventually she came to accept Riverview as her home. Harriet knew about burdens more than most people, and yet she accepted her burden and didn’t complain. How could she do that?

Now, I don’t want to suggest that Harriet never complained about anything. Vern and her children can testify to the fact that when she was know to raise her voice occasionally. Sometimes,when the children were a little rambunctious, Vern would suggest that if Harriet wanted the house to quiet down, maybe she should quiet down first. But Harriet never complained about her physical disability. She seemed to accept that burden in her life. How could she do that?

I would like to suggest two reasons. First, she accepted her burden and didn’t complain because she put other people’s needs first. Harriet was know by family and friends alike to be someone they could go to with a problem because she would always take the time to listen to them - not give advice, but truly listen to them. As her children were growing up, she was “mom” to many of their friends. She loved to cook and fix meals for her family. Harriet was dedicated to her church community. She was a founding member of St. Rose of Lima Circle. After the staff at RiverviewCareCenter came to know Harriet, her room came to be a place where they would hang out when they wanted to get away for a few minutes. Someone once gifted Harriet with some M&M’s. She did not particularly like M&M’s but once she found out the staff at Riverview did like them she always made certain she had M&M’s in her room for them. The first reason Harriet was able to accept her burdens in life is because she didn’t focus on herself and her problems.Her focus was on others.

The second reason Harriet was able to accept her burden was because she had a bunch of people in her life that put her first. Vern came to the nursing home everyday to visit and play cards with Harriet. She has husband, a sister, children, grandchildren, family and friends who love her deeply. The staff at Riverview who hung out in Harriet’s room may have come partly for the M&M’s and they may have come because they knew that Harriet would brighten their day a little bit. They also came because they knew their presence would brighten her day a bit as well.

So… reason one that Harriet seemed to handle her burdens so well was because she put other people’s needs before her own. Reason two that Harriet seemed to handle her burdens so well was because she had people in her life that put her needs before their needs. Jesus says that in order to understand what he teaches we need to be less wise and learned and more childlike. Someone who is a whole lot more childlike that I would have probably said all I have said here much more simply and yet profoundly by saying, Harriet is a woman who loves deeply and she is a woman who is deeply loved.

All of us have burdens in our lives. We all have crosses to bear. The loss we feel in our lives today because Harriet died is a burden we carry. What we learn from Jesus is what Harriet seemed to learn from him - those burdens and crosses become easier to carry when we reach out in mutual, loving service to one another.

I pray that we continue to support and love on another. It is also my prayer that we take consolation in our belief in faith Harriet is not dead, but rather born into eternal life. Imagine with me for a moment Harriet on that mountain top that Isaiah described to us.Maybe she is giving a few directions to keep things orderly, but mostly she is resting at a banquet table and being served a sumptuous meal by a God who loves her desperately.

So the bottom line about this easy yoke and light burden thing - let us take consolation in our faith in Christ Jesus and continue to mutually console another in faith and love.