I have just returned from a whirlwind trip to Adelaide where I spent a few days with my sisters – reconnecting and coming to the realisation that no matter what is happening in life – in the possibility of ‘no-life’ we often find a way to join together – regardless!!!!

I am sure we have all felt and witnessed the out-pouring of love and generosity over the recent bushfire’s in Victoria. We have all gathered in large numbers to support those whose lives were turned upside down because of it. This is the beauty of our spirit and the love and generosity as a human-being that we hold. We all hold.

So….this is also how it is in my family. We gather, yes, in large numbers, whenever death beckons. We feel its call and we rally.

Now, I haven’t seen my eldest sister for some years, actually, the last time I saw her was at my mothers funeral in 2000, so it had ‘been awhile’. And yet, here I was ‘rallying’ to be by her side in her ‘moment of truth’. Did she ask me to be there? No. Did I feel obligated to be there? No. So why, you may ask???

Death. Yep. Pure and simple. Death.

I wanted to connect with her, to look into her eyes and to let her know I loved her. I wanted to let her know that although we hadn’t spent much time together in recent times. I was her sister and I cared.

I also wanted to be there for her family and my other sisters to support them. I wanted to honour the ‘agreement’ we had made as a family, long before we were born. I just wanted to connect.

I remember when my mum was dying and everyone ‘rallyed’. Yep. They came from far and wide. They sent their love and their prayers and we knew that her death wasn’t in vain, it wasn’t something that would just go without notice. No. Her death would be something we would remember. But…more importantly…we would remember her life. We would remember how we loved her. How we spent time with her. We would all have our own special memories of ‘our mum’ and we would hold them deep within our heart….forever. Those wonderful memories that, not only, would keep us strong when we didn’t feel we could be, they would remind us of a great love we had shared.

So….as I sat with my eldest sister, it wasn’t about feeling sorry for her, being sad or unhappy that maybe she didn’t have much time left, it was about celebrating her life. The good, funny times, and the crazy…oh my god, why did you ever do that…times!!!! As I looked into her eyes, I sent her love and healing and I whispered prayers on the breeze so that she may know that her life was a gift and her presence in my life was something meaningful for me, regardless of how close, or not we may have been.

And whilst, when she decides to depart, she leaves behind a husband, sons, grandchildren and all of us sisters – she does not leave any of them, or us in vain. She leaves us knowing that she played a huge part in our life. Whilst she may not have spent as long as she wanted with any of us, she spent as long as she needed to in order to leave an impression in our hearts – and isn’t that what it is all about?

To touch another person’s heart and to leave an impression of love is surely the greatest gift we can bestow?

If not by the life we have shared with them, but by the life we have shared without them. Either way the people left standing get to bare witness to life and love at it’s most magnificent and I feel that is truly a gift to behold.

Many blessings, Julianne xxx