Leaving Behind the Kindness of Lifting Us Up

"Laughter is the sound of the soul dancing.  My soul probably looks like Fred Astaire."
―Jarod Kintz

Today I went to the funeral Mass for the grandfather of a dear friend.  He was eulogized by two gentlemen, who both spoke of the grandfather's laughter.  Indeed, whenever I think of my friend's grandfather, it is impossible to think of him not smiling and laughing.

I left the church thinking how lovely to be remembered for one' s laugh -- because to be remembered that way is about so much more than laughter.  Laughter is rarely a solitary activity (although I have laughed by myself many times).  When we share laughter, we bring joy to others, we lift them up.

One of the men who spoke at the funeral said this of the grandfather:  "He thought we could be better than we are.  And in thinking so, he made many of us believe it, too."

My friend's grandfather lives on in the laughter he left behind, in the way he lifted up others.