On Tamal Krsna Maharaja's 2012 Vyasa Puja celebration, I told Mother Lore about the upcoming event that we were planning to attend.. Explaining it as a "birthday celebration"... in a way that she could understand. The devotees come together to honor their teacher/guru on that day.
That afternoon, she was lying on her bed and seemed quite troubled. She took my hand and said that she was confused , she needed to talk to someone, "But I"m embarrassed to ask." I told her if she wanted, she could talk to me. So she asked me ...... "Is Tamal still alive?" My heart sank and I thought to speak in an esoteric way... "That one's Guru never leaves...he lives on in the hearts of the devotees"... but I knew that's not what she was asking. I inquired a bit further. She was wanting to know if she should expect to see him at the celebration that evening. But somewhere, the lingering memory of a tragedy confused her.
I sat down on the bed next to her and told her "No. He had passed on."
And then came her queries. "When?" "How?" "Where?" I answered all of her questions in the best gentle manner as I was able. She took it all in and nodded and said, "Thank you."
Last week, Lore got a visit from a relative whom she had not seen in many years. As we were making plans to receive the guest, she suggested we contact Tamal, as he might like to be here to see the relative also.
I paused for a moment...
I told her that Tamal was traveling and wasn't in the area.
***
Why should I disturb her mind with the so called "truth"? What purpose would it serve? Sometimes kindness is a higher principle than honesty....and other times the kind thing to do is be honest.
Have you ever lost someone you love and wanted one more conversation, one more chance to make up for the time when you thought they would be here forever? If so, then you know you can go your whole life collecting days and none will outweigh the one you wish you had back.
For One More Day by Mitch Albom
No comments:
Post a Comment