Dean of Identity | Mr Charles Brauer

Our wonderful tradition of honouring those who we have lost from our Terrace Family and own families, continued this week with our Commemorative Mass, aligning with the Feast Days of All Saint and All Souls of this week. Our College Captains each read names, each name that they read was a life lost and a light to be remembered. Each name resonated in the hearts of those gathered in the Chapel of The Holy Family on Tuesday morning.

We have all experienced the pain of loss and the burden it can place on our lives. Some would say that although we can grow to live with and carry the burden loss, we never completely fill the void that loss can place in our lives. What a somber thought! However, it does provide us with the opportunity to keep those who we’ve lost, alive in spirit through how we live our own lives. The spirit and memories of those we’ve lost can inspire us, protect us and guide us, just how a shepherd would tend to their flock.

One source of strength for me during times of loss has been the Psalm that can often be heard filling the atmosphere of those gathered to farewell a loved one – The Lord is My Shepherd. I love its gentle way of reminding us that although we may become physically separated from our loved ones, we can remain open to being guided by their spirit and the memories they have left:

The Lord is my Shepherd and I want to follow wherever he leads me, wherever he goes.Over the mountains, the waters and byways, valleys and highways, he’s waiting for me.
I want to go to meet him there, to lay myself down in his love.
The Lord is my Shepherd and I want to follow wherever he leads me, wherever he goes.
And while on the journey to where we are going he promised to be there to help us along.
And over the mountains we’ll walk on together, know all the wonders he’s given to me.

Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have recently experienced the loss of a loved one and with those who continue to find ways to carry the burden of loss from times past.