Psychology tells us that inside every man, no matter how long he lives, is a little boy. Honest self-appraisal confirms that truth. And for most little boys, their first love in life on Earth is their mother.

Losing that first love is never a matter of if, only when. And while death is the common destiny for all of us, it's our nature to focus on life and its events, circumstances, opportunities and challenges--things we think we have some ability to control.

People strong in the Christian belief don't view death as the end, but as something conquered by Christ. The canon of liturgy and literature are rich with affirmation and assurance, from which we draw comfort and, even in unhappy or hard times, joy.

For believers, the "celebration of life" applies to eternal life as well as the one lived here below.

I owe my religious upbringing to my mother, who owed it to her mother (my Grandma Warren). Between those two souls, I got a front-row seat to a full dose of Christian charity, godly womanliness and unshakable faith.

As I write this, my mom is in her last days, on what is traditionally called her deathbed. In clinical terms she's mostly nonresponsive, but her countenance suggests she's resting peacefully as........

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