Rays of Grace

How do you thank someone for giving you the gift of life? Not just life in the sense of existence; life in the sense of essence, spirit, vitality and soul. And how do you thank them, if they are no longer here? This past January marked the fourteenth anniversary of the author’s mother’s death. To lift her spirits, she decided to treat this event as the fourteenth anniversary of her mother’s life. In Ireland, where her mother’s family is from, a traditional Irish wake was more of a party than a funeral. It consisted of the gathering of family and friends, plenty of food and drink to intoxicate the senses, and the absolute revelry of the departed life. Although this tradition is not as common as it once was, the author decided to revive its philosophy.