I am getting so many wonderful expressions of sympathy and I am truly thankful for all of them. One of them explains that they are praying for me In “this time of your faith-filled grieving that is so vastly different from the world’s hopeless despair and sadness (1 Thessalonians 4:13ff.).”  That is quite lovely. Faith filled grieving is the product of trusting what we know to be true – that Christ promised to save us and we believe him.   We are not uninformed as others that have no hope, but our hope steels us  and bolsters us and gives us peace. Christ the Savior has risen from the dead and promises to bring us along into everlasting life.   Thanks for the prayers and the good word and I will have more information about plans for a service for my mother later.