Angels Unawares By Ronnie Bray Norma died on the thirteenth of November nineteen-ninety-seven. On the fourteenth, I had to take care of business, register her death, make the necessary change to our joint account, and buy a suit for her funeral. Pamela thought it would do me good to take care of these things alone, and in a swirling fog of pain and disbelief I set off to town. My first call was at the Registrar’s office in Huddersfield’s Civic Centre to present Dr Handa’s death certificate and obtain copies of the official entry to send to the insurance company. The Registrar was a surprisingly young lady who besides being efficient was tender and sympathetic. Although she must meet dozens of bereaved people every day in her work, I got the profound impression that she was deeply concerned with my welfare and my sense of loss. She listened at length as I told of the wonder that was Norma, her talents, her faith, and the good she did throughout her life. She said that if I ever wanted to come in and talk to her, I could call on her at any time. She meant it and I knew it, and blessed her for it. My next visit was at the Halifax Bank in Cloth Hall Street, at its junction with Chancery Lane, to remove Norma’s name from our joint account. Miss Greenwood’s delicacy and compassion helped to ease my pain as I had Norma’s name taken off our account. They issued a new chequebook with only my name on it. There is a sense of disloyalty involved in removing a recently dead loved one’s name, and Miss Greenwood knew that, and made it as easy as she could. My next task was to buy a suit for Norma’s funeral, so I went across town to the Co-op and looked in the men’s department. I found a suit that looked suitable for mourning and took it to the counter. The shop assistant’s badge said Mrs Moses. She was maternal and efficient, and although she didn’t know that I was in the depth of grief, she guided me through the process of getting a suit, shirt, tie, braces, and handkerchiefs to make my ensemble perfect. I was especially grateful to Mrs Moses, a short, not yet matronly West Indian lady, because she made what was a difficult task easier without knowing why. She was an angel from heaven to me that day, as was the Registrar, and the bank employee. It is said that God tempers the wind to the shorn lamb and, on that day, He tempered the wind to shield me by putting in place three angels, as bright and fair as ever harped in heaven or ever played around the throne of God. Truly is it said that we encounter angels unawares. The trick is recognising them and their blessings, when our minds might be focused on other things. Copyright © 2007 - Ronnie Bray ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | 
