On The Wings of A Snow, White Dove.....

Last week I received a phone call from my good friend and neighbor, Jenn. She asked it she could come over and talk. I told her, of course, and that I would put a pot of coffee on. I knew something was wrong, by the tone of her voice.

Jenn and I have been neighbors for roughly 10 years. She was the live-in girlfriend of our neighbor, Kevin. He had just moved in a couple of months before we moved into our house. Our friendship just kinda gradually developed over time. To be honest, I can't remember when or how it started, but I thank the good Lord every day that it did. We have been there for each other thru pregnancies, job hunts and losses, marriage trouble, birthdays, holidays, you name it, and we have gone thru it together. I can honestly say that she has become more a sister of the heart to me than just a "friend or neighbor". Her husband has a band, and sometimes during the summer, they would jam in the back yard. And sometimes, I would come over and sing along. During these "jam sessions", her dad would be there tapping his feet.

The past few years have been tough on her though. Three years ago, Jenn went thru the loss of her grandfather and shortly thereafter, her grandmother. Both within a three month period. A year later, her beloved uncle, who was also her godfather, died in a horrific motorcycle accident. Jenn had to help her father with all of this, as any responsible child would, but I could see it just weighing on her.

Jenn is basically an only child. When I say "basically", I mean that she has a brother who only shows up for parties and food and drink. But when she needs him most, he just seems to vanish. Like now...sigh.

So, Jenn comes over, and I pour her a cup and we sit down. Her son, Jacob, and my son are busy playing in Nicky's bedroom, and I have "assigned" kid watching duty to my two girls, so that Jenn and I can have a conversation in realtive peace.

Before I could even start, Jenn started tearing up. I had invited her to go on the Bad Frogs Op in April. She and her girlfriend, Sheryl, were gonna ride with me and share the costs of a room. However, now she needed to cancel. It was because of her dad.

Her father had been diagonsed with cancer back last summer. They found and removed some tumors from his lungs. They then put him on a regime of chemo and radiation, with a good prognosis. But, as it sometimes is, the cancer proved to have too strong a hold on his body, and consequently, the chemo/radiation treatments were not working as well as the doctors had first thought. During his last check-up, they found more spots and new spots on his liver. His liver has since started metasizing.
She had been advised to get a hold of Hospice, and that he only had about 3 months. We both sat there at my kichen table and cried. Then Jenn asked me to pray with her, which I did.

Today, I went over to her house to visit, and to see if there was anything that I could do. Her father is in her son's bedroom and his condition has worsened. He was going thru periods of lucidity, on and off. The nurse from Hospice told Jenn that they didn't think that he would make it thru the weekend. My heart absolutely breaks for her. I know that in the future, I will have to deal with a similar situation for my parents.

She sat down with me and asked me a question. She asked what is a good song to be sung at a funeral. I was quiet for a minute, and then I told her one of my mother's favorite songs was "On The Wings Of A Snow White Dove". That it was an old country song, and that she had it sung at my brother's funeral. She asked me to sing it to her. So, I did.


On the wings of a snow white dove
He sends his pure sweet love
A sign from above
On the wings of a dove

When trouble surrounds us
When evils come
The body grows weak
The spirit grows numb
When these things beset us
He doesn't forget us
He sends down his love
On the wings of a dove

(Chorus)

On the wings of a snow white dove
He sends his pure sweet love
A sign from above
On the wings of a dove

When Noah had drifted
On the flood many days
He searched for land
In various ways
Troubles he had some
But wasn't forgotten
He sent down his love
On the wings of a dove

(Chorus)

On the wings of a snow white dove
He sends his pure sweet love
A sign from above
On the wings of a dove

On the wings of a snow white dove
He sends his pure sweet love
A sign from above
On the wings of a dove

A sign from above
On the wings of a dove ....


I think that was the hardest thing I have ever had to do. Sit there and sing a song to my friend, all the while her father is dying in the next room. But strangely, it also seemed to give her a sense of peace. I have never tried to push any kind of religious belief on anyone, but I have noticed that during times of despair, any show of faith seems to help.

I finished singing the song to her. Jenn was quiet for a moment, and with tears running down her face, she asked me if I would sing that song at her father's funeral. I told her that I would. I just hope that I can get thru it...