This is a super-sized week of pastoring, bookended by a wedding last Saturday and a funeral this Saturday. Today in particular was a super-sized day, with multiple meetings and memory care worship services. Typically on a day like today, I’d call Dennis to check in throughout the day whenever I caught a break. He’d encourage me to keep going, to stay upright, and to stand firm. He understood the balance of fortitude, empathy, grit, and grace that pastoring requires, without grief on top of it all. I missed those phone calls today more than words can say. The grief is still griefing. My person is still gone. Thank God for kitty cuddles.