There was a woman who had been diagnosed
with a terminal illness
and had been given three months to live.
So as as she was getting her things "in order,"
she contacted her pastor
and had him come to her house
to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.
She told him
which songs she wanted sung at the service,
what scriptures she would like read,
and what outfit
she wanted to be buried in.
The woman also requested
to be buried with her favorite
Bible.
Everything was in order
and the pastor was preparing to leave
when
the woman suddenly remembered something
very important to her.
"There's one more thing," she excitedly.
"What's that?" came the pastor's reply.
"This is very important," the woman continued.
"I want to be buried
with a fork in my right hand."
The pastor stood looking at the woman,
not knowing quite what to say.
"That surprises you, doesn't it?"
the woman asked.
"Well, to be honest,
I'm puzzled by the request," said the pastor.
The woman explained.
"In all my years of attending church socials
and potluck dinners
I always remember that when the dishes were cleared,
someone would inevitably lean over and say,
'Keep your fork.'
It was my favorite part
because I knew that
something better was coming...
like velvety chocolate cake
or deep-dish apple pie.
Something wonderful and of substance!
So I just want people to see me there
in that casket with a fork in my hand
and I want them to wonder,
'What's with the fork?'
Then I want you to tell them:
'Keep your fork...
the best is yet to come.'
The pastor's eyes welled up with tears of joy
as he hugged the woman goodbye.
He knew this would be one of the last times
he would see her before her death.
But he also knew that the woman
had a better grasp of heaven that he did.
She knew that something better was coming.
At the funeral people were walking by
the woman's casket
and they saw the pretty dress she was wearing
and her favorite Bible
and the fork placed in her right hand.
Over and over, the pastor heard the question,
"What's with the fork?"
And over and over he smiled.
During his message, the pastor told the people
of the conversation he had with the woman
shortly before she died.
He also told them about the fork
and what it symbolized to her.
The pastor told the people
how he could not stop thinking
about the fork
and told them that they
probably would not be able
to stop thinking about it either.
He was right.
So the next time you reach down
for your fork,
let it remind you oh so gently, that
the best is yet to come.
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