Heaven Has No Coda

by Robin J. Steinweg

“It’s fall,” my friend says.
“No!” I surprise us both with more volume
and vehemence than I meant.
More meekly, I explain my stand.

“It’s summer still. You want proof?

The trees are green; the grass wants mowing.
I still see Japanese beetles ravaging roses.
The calendar says there’s still one more day.”

(my friend laughs)

“Hang on if you want. As for me, fall’s the season.
Rip up the garden, toss out the old vines
and spent blooms. Till the soil, add organic material
to rot over winter. Cool nights make great sleeping.”

(I press my point)

“There’s still harvest to be had! More flowers;
all they need is a little extra care—to be covered
when it’s cold.

(I feel hot tears prick my eyes)

…to be enjoyed just a little longer.”

“Are we still talking about the change of season?”

(All at once I understand my emotion)

My friend has born no losses yet of family. No loved one

 has grown stooped with summer’s passing. 
No frost has nipped the bloom from a cherished vine.
Fall seems short and cruel when winter looms.         

But hurrying in to interrupt my desperate grief
comes the truth with its solace and
unwavering calm, its unending joy:

“Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be

away from these earthly bodies, for then
we will be at home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8 NLT).

Life in Christ is a song. Fall is the bridge and

winter the outro. Heaven has no coda! The Composer
keeps adding voices and melodies in an eternal Arioso
Giocoso.

“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am

He who will sustain you. I have made you and
I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you” (Is. 46:4 NIV).

(I smile at my friend)

“You know, you’re right. Fall has the bluest skies 
and the brightest surprises under the chlorophyll in the leaves.
It has all the beauty of spring, the wisdom of summer, and
the promise of new beginnings.”