Busy time/ weddings, death, children and weather

It's been a busy week with many unusual errands.  We're blessed to attend another confirmation this weekend.

My brother sent this Youtube clip (below) highlighting the weather during May and his house and home, mostly likely produced for the grandparents in Germany.

The wedding dress arrived in the mail, having been ordered on-line.  It has been tried and found to fit perfectly and be wonderful.  Of course, you cannot get a picture of that, sorry to say.   The bride and I are the first and only ones to have laid eyes on it so far.  I was going to tell her what a wonderful girl she has become and how I miss Stefan, but when the thought came to me, I felt I was going to burst into tears, so I did not tell her.  I think this will be the collective thought and feeling through the whole wedding.  Best to think of it ahead of time and maybe work it through the system beforehand, as much as possible.

Still reading the large catechism.  There is a lot there.

Also started Matt Harrison's "Christ have Mercy" (ordered it from Pastor Erickson's Amazon list). [I stand corrected, apparently, this book is not on Pastor Erickson's list.  It must have come up as a "custormers who bought this, also bought this"-- item.  I did buy something off Bror's lists, though.  Will get to that another time. Check out the lists.]

The first chapter on the car accident in a small community claiming a young person around graduation time and ministering in that situation, grabbed me, of course.  Here is a bit from this first chapter titled:  "Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy" . On death:  "I had witnessed a foreshadowing of the Last Day.  "Marrying and giving in marriage"... will be going on at the last.  And then Jesus shall come "like a thief in the night".  Every death, in fact, is a harbinger of that great and terrible day of the Lord.  Every death is that thief in the night.  Death stands over our shoulder, ever ready to steal us away.  We avoid looking back, but occasionally we risk a glance into the dark, though we quickly return to the party.  Death's beady eyes remain trained on us as we take our every breath, his steely stare like ice on our bare necks.  When we refuse to acknowledge him, our consciences stir our stomachs with disquiet."

That's just the beginning of the book.  Haven't got much further, only looked at it last night. The chapter title reminds me of my father at my mother's death bed at home.  She had just drawn her last breath and it was just he and we children there.  That's all he said:  "Lord, have mercy".