I feel very honored today that Aunt Frances and Fran allowed me to speak a few word about Uncle Rudy.  Uncle Rudy was my grandfather Gaines Barnes’ brother. Which in turn makes him my Great Uncle.  I think this is a very appropriate title for him, because Uncle Rudy was a GREAT Uncle not only to me, but to everyone he came in contact with.  Even people that he was not technically kin to, called him Uncle Rudy.  Why is this?  I think it had something to do with his genuine love for people.

Uncle Rudy was so energetic and had a real passion for life.  He never met a stranger and was often laid back and easy going.  He was a practical joker at times and always knew how to bring a smile to someone who was down.  He was a man who took pride in everything he did, weather it was his yard and flowers, his coins and ball cards or his jewelry designing and making.  He took time to make sure everything us just right.  And if you knew him when he lived in Jacksonville, we could all agree he gave Chevy Chase a run for his money when it came to Christmas lights.  Uncle Rudy was a man of few words, but what he said he meant and meant what he said.  He would bend over backwards or give you the shirt off his back.  All you had to do was ask.  He never complained and always stood up for what was right.  He was a man of integrity and stood the test of time.  These are the attributes that makes him not only a Great Uncle but a Great person in general.

Uncle Rudy and I had many things in common other that just a last name.  I was born on his Birthday June 4th.  We always looked forward to celebrating our birthdays together at the jewelry store.  We both collected baseball cards and we both loved the outdoors whether it was playing baseball, golf, fishing or working in the yard.  I will even go as far as saying I wore #10 on all my sports jersey’s just like Uncle Rudy.  One last similarity is, in Aunt Frances words, we are both “skinny as a minute” and neither one of us could ever gain any weight.

Uncle Rudy would have been a fantastic grandfather.  Unfortunately, for him, he never had the opportunity.  For you see, grandfathers play a very important role in the life of their grandsons.  When my Granddaddy Gaines passed away 11 years ago, I was left with no living Grandfathers.  Uncle Rudy filled that ever important role in my life.  He taught me many things.  First and foremost he taught me how to love my wife through all of life’s obstacles.  Through thick and thin their love stood the test of time, 53 years.  Even though he complained about Aunt Frances nagging him all the time, he loved every minute of it.  Secondly, he taught me how to love my children.  Fran was the apple of his eye.  She was his life and you would have thought she hung the moon.  He was always so proud of her and her accomplishments.  He wanted her to have everything in life and if he had anything to do with it she would have.  But the most important thing Uncle Rudy taught me was to exemplify Christ’s love to everyone I come in contact with.  This is the real reason why I feel people were drawn to him.  They saw Christ’s love in him. 

One of Uncle Rudy’s favorite sayings, when asked how he was doing, he would respond “If I felt any better, there would have to be two of me.”  Well there will never be another Uncle Rudy, because God broke the mold when he was finished.  But, I hope that one day with all our similarities that I can look back on my life and see a tiny reflection of all the lessons he taught me.  And if on day, I have the opportunity to be a grandfather that I can pass on these same values and lessons that he has instilled in me.

Uncle Rudy was a Great Uncle, not only to me, but to everyone he came in contact with.  For this I am eternally grateful. 

In closing I would like to share with you how wonder our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is.  On Friday afternoon only an hour or so after Uncle Rudy had passed away, I was out running a few errands.  As I was driving along in my Jeep I looked up and in the sky I saw the most beautiful rainbow I think I have ever seen.  This rainbow stretch from one side of the sky to the other.  One of the amazing things about it was that one end of it looked as though it were coming from the direction of Wayne Memorial Hospital where Uncle Rudy lay.  Immediately, a smile came over my face and a peace came into my heart.  I knew right then and there that this was God’s way of allowing Uncle Rudy to smile down on me.  He was letting me know he was in a much better place now. 

For you see, the rainbow is the first recorded covenant (promise) to man.  It is revealed to us after Noah and the flood in Genesis charter 9.  Listen to verses 14-15.  “Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant (promise) between me and you.”

God promises us many things.  One is that He will never give us more then we can handle.  Second, He promises to never leave us nor forsake us.  But most importantly he promises us a hope for tomorrow, if we believe in his son Jesus Christ.  That one day we will see Uncle Rudy again. In heaven.  I look forward to that day when I stand before the Father and humbly hear those same amazing words that Uncle Rudy heard on Friday, “Well done my good and faithful servant.  Welcome Home”

So Aunt Frances, Fran, family and friends whenever the storm clouds of life are around you take comfort in knowing God is in control.  Rest in the assurance of His love.  And the next time you see a beautiful rainbow in the sky think of Uncle Rudy smiling down on us and God’s promise for our future.  Because there in lies the peace and comfort we need to sustain us.

Stephen Barnes