A Kind and Gentle Man

Some years ago, the widely read author and theologian Henri Nouwen wrote about a man named Bob, the husband of a friend of his who died suddenly of a heart attack. Nouwen writes, “My friend decided to keep her two young children away from the funeral. She thought it would be too hard for them to see their father put in the ground. For years after Bob’s death, the cemetery remained a fearful and dangerous place for them. One day my friend asked me to visit the grave with her and invited the children to come along. The older one was too afraid to go, but the younger one decided to come with us.

“When we came to the place where Bob was buried, the three of us sat down on the grass around the stone engraved with the words A KIND AND GENTLE MAN. I said, ‘maybe one day we should have a picnic here. This is not only a place to think about…