When Love Shines Brighter Than Sexual Orientation
What I learned at a deathbed
The other night, I joined two women in a vigil as they watched their beloved father, whom I’ll call Keith, take his last breaths. They were strangers to me, but as a chaplain at the hospital doing an overnight shift, I was called to the bedside. They wanted company and comfort during their time of grief.
We chatted for a while, pausing every now and again when the man’s breath would stop, wondering if it was going to be his last. It was holy as we watched someone go from this life to the mystery of what’s next.
I soon learned that the two women were not sisters but former partners. Yes, they were lesbians. I’ll call them Wynn and Charlotte. Charlotte was Keith’s daughter, and Wynn had come into the family through her partner. Charlotte confessed that she and her father had been estranged for quite some time but had recently been able to reconcile.
When I asked how that had happened, Charlotte pointed to Wynn, who was sitting right next to Keith, ready to reach over and soothe him when he seemed in distress. It was she who had brought the family back together and was still doing so with obvious tenderness and love.
Even though those two women were no longer in a committed relationship, it was obvious they still…
