Great Story

There was a woman who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness and
was given 3 months to live. As she begin getting her things "in
order", she called her pastor and asked for him to come to her house
to discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.

She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service, what
scriptures she wanted read, and what dress she wanted to be buried in.
She also requested to be buried with her favorite Bible in her left
hand.

Everything was in order and as the pastor was preparing to leave, the
woman suddenly remembered one final request that was very important to
her.

"Please Pastor, just one more thing," she said excitedly.

"Sure, what is it" came the pastor's reply.

"This is very important to me," the woman continued...."I want to be
buried holding a fork in my right hand."

The pastor gazed at the woman, with a loss for words.

"That surprises you, doesn't it?" the woman asked.

The pastor replied "Well to be quite honest, I'm
puzzled by the request."

The woman explained. "You see, Pastor, in all my
years of attending church socials and potluck dinners, I remember that
when the dishes were being cleared after the main course, someone
would inevitably lean over to me and say, 'Keep your Fork'....it was
my favorite part because I knewe that something better was coming,
like velvety chocolate cake or deep dish apple pie. Something
wonderful, and with subtance to end the great meal."

The pastor listened intently and a smile came upon
his face. The woman continued, "So, I just want people to see me
there in the casket with a fork in my hand and I want them to
wonder...'What's with the fork?'...then I want you to tell them: "Keep your
Fork.....the best is yet to come".

The pastor's eyes walled up with tears of joy as he
hugged the woman good-bye. He knew that this would be one of the last
times that he would see her before her death. But he also knew
that the woman had a better grasp of Heaven than he did. She KNEW and
trusted that the best was yet to come.

At the funeral, everyone that walked by the woman's casket saw her wearing a beautiful dress with her favorite Bible held in her left hand and a fork held in her right hand.

Over and over the pastor heard people ask the question, "Why is she
holding a fork?" and his smile began to get larger and brighter each
time.

During his message, the pastor told the people about the conversation
that he had with the woman shortly before she died. He explained the
fork and what it symbolized to her. The Pastor told everyone how he
could not stop thinking about the fork and how he hoped that they
would not be able to stop thinking about it either.

That fork and the meaning of it to the woman had quite the impact on
everyone and they are still sharing the story with people they meet.
And now it has been shared with you....so the next time you reach for
your fork, let it remind you, oh so gently, that the best is yet to
come...