The rainbow Lady

A promise kept

After spending almost twenty years as an in home care giver for the terminally ill I have had the opportunity to whiteness events that there is no reasonable explanation. One of these events took place on the Fourth of July 2002 in a place called Fry Ridge Kentucky. Although the names, age and other identifiers have been changed the events are real.

After spending the better part of two years caring for an elderly couple...(Sam who had Alzheimer's and Lilly who's tiny body was riddled with cancer.) life in the Mathers home had fallen into a routine of meal preparation, personal care and many hours of conversation with Miss Lilly. While most of our conversations were about things in the past and how things were done the old fashioned way. It is the conversation I had with her not long before she passed away that will always stand out.

We had just gotten her settled back in at home after spending a few days in the hospital. Once everyone was gone she called me to her bedside. She patted the bed beside her indicating that she wanted me to sit down and listen to her, so I walked around the bed and laid down beside her. I had spent many hours curled up on Miss Lilly's bed chatting with her over the last couple years. There was a long silence as she waited for me to get comfortable and then in her tiny frail voice she began to speak.

"Ya know that's I ain't gonna be here many more days don't ha." It was more of a statement than a question. So I waited for her to continue. "An there's something's that i's wantin ya ta promise me before I go home to be wit da lord". "I'll do what ever I can for you Miss Lilly... You know I will" I told her. She began telling me what she wanted me to do for her and the family immediately after she passed. I waited for quietly for her to finish speaking,and for some reason (I to this day don't understand why) I said "Miss Lilly would you do ME a favor..." she told me that she would if she could. I took a deep breath before I continued "when you get to heaven would you look up my great grandma and tell her that I have never forgotten what she told me when I was a kid. She said she would if The Lord would let her... For some reason I told her he would. I then continued and asked her if she would do me another favor and send me a sign if she could... She said once again... If The Lord will let me I will... I once again told her he would let her. That was the end of our conversation.

Things went on as usual at the Mathers home and the conversation was forgotten. Eighteen days later on the fourth of July at 4 pm Miss Lilly passed away with all of her family at her side. As the family waited for the undertaker I carried out Miss Lilly's wishes and once my duties were done I excused myself collected my belongings and walked towards the door...

Once i stepped outside the heat took my breath as the sun beat down heavily on my head and shoulders from a cloudless July sky. Sweat was beginning to break out before I got half way to the barn where I had parked the night before to give family room to park. I opened the car door and even more heat hit me in the face. I rolled down all of the windows,turned on the air conditioning and backed the car into the shadow of the barn doors to get out of the sun as I waited for the car to cool off... and have a good cry away from view.

Once I had collected myself enough to drive I rolled up the windows and started the fifteen minute drive home. I was about halfway home when out of a clear blue cloudless day the most beautiful rainbow appeared out of nowhere... The closer I got to my house the brighter it got... I pulled into my driveway and there in my yard was the end of the rainbow... Every tree, every bush, every rock even the blades of grass of grass were the colors of the rainbow... Everything looked like a prism... It was only then that I remembered the conversation... I got out of the car and just stood there basking in the colors of pure light... If that wasn't a sign I don't know what is. In my opinion message delivered. No matter how many days or years I might have left here on this earth I will never forget Miss Lilly my rainbow lady.