Tears from Heaven by Chantal Bellehumeur

Tears From Heaven

by Chantal Bellehumeur

A short memoir by Chantal Bellehumeur (In loving memory of Gilles Bellehumeur 19282013)

My paternal grandfather passed away on July 6, 2013. When I learned the news, I felt sad but also somewhat relieved because I witnessed him suffering from his cancer. Although I grieved, I knew he was no longer in pain so it gave me peace of mind.

Even though I was never religious like him, I imagined my beloved grand-papa looking down on me as well as the rest of his family from heaven. I needed to believe there was life after death.

I wanted to write something heartfelt to read at the funeral, even though I hate public speaking, but found myself unable to compose anything about my grandfather. It was quite frustrating for me because I love writing and felt like I was letting him down. My head is usually filled with ideas. Even when I don't have much of a story to begin with, words generally start pouring out of me the second I pick up a pen and paper or start typing. I often find it difficult to stop elaborating and embellishing stories.

Writing has always been therapeutic for me, yet I couldn’t find the right words to express my emotions; not even for myself. I suppose every writer experiences writer's block at some point.

I had a lot to say in regards to my grandfather and how much he would be missed, yet couldn't get any of it down. At the time, the only things I wrote for the general public were fictional stories so figured it might be part of the problem. Even though I often used real life as the base for my writing, I was accustomed to inventing stories rather than sticking to facts.

A few months after my grandfather's funeral, I was suddenly hit with a stroke of inspiration. I was writing family oriented short stories for an online magazine associated with the local newspaper, each one with the same characters, and decided to write something in memory of my grandfather.

I based the main character's grandfather on my own, and included a few memories of him.

I made a point of mentioning how emotional the main character’s grandfather was, along with his habit of tearing up whenever he became overjoyed. My own grandfather always needed facial tissues at special events such as weddings and anniversary

celebrations. Happy tears would also form whenever his grandchildren sang, danced, or played an instrument. I used all that to create my story. Even the funeral in my fictional story was similar to the one I attended in real life. It was my first, never having experienced the loss of a loved one before. I did my best to be strong and remain composed for my grandmother and father’s sake, wanting to support them emotionally. In doing so, I must have subconsciously put my feelings on hold. When tears tried sneaking out, I held them in for the most part.

As I typed my story, I found myself crying often. Finally allowing the tears to flow naturally, I was now the one who needed facial tissues. I entitled my work of fiction “Rest in Peace" and dedicated it to my grandfather. On the date the story was published, there was a sunshower in the evening even though the weather forecast didn’t call for any rain. It was accompanied by a beautiful rainbow.

I believed my grandfather somehow read the story and was touched which made him start crying happy tears just like he used to do when he was alive. I imagined he was proud of me, and began tearing up while walking home from the bus stop after work. As the tears rolled down my cheeks and mixed with the light raindrops delicately falling on me, I felt comforted. That day, I concluded there was definitely life after death and my grandfather really was watching over me.

I’ve come to believe my grandfather became my guardian angel. I feel spiritually guided.

Note: “Rest in Peace” was originally published in The Suburban’s online magazine on November 22, 2013. The short story can also be found in the book “Emily-A Compilation of Short Stories” which is available to purchase as a paperback or Kindle on Amazon. It contains all twelve stories in the series.

Chantal Bellehumeur is a Canadian author born in 1981. She has 18 published books of various genres as well as numerous short stories, memoirs, poems and articles featured in compilation books, eMagazines, plus a local newspaper. For a complete list of publications, including free reads, visit the following website: author-chantal-bellehumeur.webnode.com/