It's been a year since Catherine rose beyond these Shadowlands, and a great many people have wept a great many tears. We never met, but catching up again with her parents Bosco (author of the incomparable www.liturgy.co.nz) and Helen was for me the highpoint of our family trip back to Christchurch last Christmas. Before going for coffee at the nearby Christchurch Arts Centre (where our waitress turned out to have been of Catherine’s best friends) they shared something of their wonderful daughter, who so remarkably transformed the lives of everyone around her.
It was her gifts as a photographer that startled me most: if I close my eyes I can still see the images Bosco shared. Witty. Insightful. Perceptive, with a wisdom vastly beyond her years. Her greatest areas of academic achievement may have been in languages and biology, and her ambition to have become a vet, but she observed life with the eye of an artist. She saw. And with seeing, she thought, and in so doing inspired others to also think.
It doesn’t take more than a few moments with anyone who knew her to realise Catherine lived with an exuberance that’s breathtaking. For her that life continues in a way we’ve yet to experience; for us there are tears, and questions, and memories, but if we’re prepared to listen her voice still urges us to continue living with the same fascination, wonder, and laughter which she brought to everything she touched Such are the blessings of the God whom she knew, and knows still. And in whom we shall all together, one day, dance again.
Please, as you read this take a moment to remember Bosco and Helen, and her brother Jonathan, and all her family and friends. If prayer forms part of your spirituality, then pause and pray for them; if not then uphold them in whatever way feels most appropriate. Either way, don’t stop thinking, or challenging yourself in the face of the incomprehensible adventure that is life. A remarkable young woman wouldn’t accept anything less.
4 comments:
What a beautiful reflection and memory of Catherine. I only knew of her in her passing one year ago and I have continued to hold the Peters family in my prayers.
My gosh. It's hard to believe it's been a year. My prayers follow yours.
She was so beautiful, bright and inspiring to all who knew her. These are the losses that are so difficult to understand. I never fail to remember her nor fail to say a prayer for her family when I go "Litergy" for prayers or the Daily Office. Thank you for this "Memoriam."
Thank you for this reflection and your prayers. You have captured Catherine so well. We are grateful for the time we had with her and that we treasured every moment. Gorgeous, smiling, vivacious, quirky, kind-hearted. One year since we entrusted Catherine to God’s loving embrace – the same embrace that holds us all. Sorely missed every moment.
Bosco, Helen, Jonathan
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