My most formative religious experience was being with my grandmother the day before she died.
It was Passover, and we had a tiny seder- the passover meal- at her bedside in her dining room (she could not go upstairs to bed any more) with just my parents and me and her.
She drifted in and out of consciousness, but she was very clear that she was going to meet her maker, and that she felt calm and resolute, and that observing the last Passover for her was really important. She felt the symbol of the journey to freedom from slavery encapsulated her life's work working with refugees from Nazi Germany and beyond.
She was a remarkable woman and a great influence generally, but being with her so close to
death when I was only 13 made me aware of peace at the end, of determination, and that human beings can decide when to die, and decide how to approach their meeting with their maker.
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