Celebration of Life

Starting the morning on Wings of Love!

Saturday, April 11, 2015                                                 1:00 PM

A Celebration of the Life of Robert Wilson Mulkey

           This World is not conclusion.  A Sequel stands beyond –

Invisible, as Music – But positive, as Sound. 

~Emily Dickinson

Robert Wilson Mulkey

For what is it to die but to stand naked in the wind and to melt into the sun?

And what is it to cease breathing, but to free the breath from its restless tides,

That it may rise and expand and seek God unencumbered?

And when the earth may claim your limbs,

Then shall you truly dance.

From The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran

 Service Leader: Rita Chamblin

Prelude: “The Rap”, Secret Garden

Rob and I loved this Irish-Norwegian musical duo from the first time we heard their music.  He surprised me with a trip to the Metroplex for a 1994 concert and kept it a secret until we approached the theatre marquee.  This song definitely calls for celebration!

Opening Words:

Birth is a miracle of love and courage, bringing light into the world;

Death is a loss of light, but no less an act of courage,

For we are born from – and return to – mystery.

Chalice Lighting:  Jerry Mulkey

Eulogy

    Robert Wilson Mulkey

             February 24, 1947 – December 20, 2014

Robert Wilson Mulkey was born on February 24, 1947, in Greenwood, South Carolina, to George and Mary Helen Mulkey.  He married Sarah Hill on December 21, 1968, in Abilene, Texas.  He earned a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Theological Seminary and served as a hospital chaplain in Houston and Abilene.  From 1990 until his retirement in July of 2014, Rob was a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, a counseling consultant, and the program administrator for a family advocacy program.

Rob is survived by his wife of forty-five years and 364 days, Sarah Mulkey, his son, Dr. Zack Mulkey and daughter-in-law Dr. Shannon Yarbrough, and three amazing grandsons:  Caleb Andrew, Sawyer Kris, and Weston Pax, as well as his three brothers:  Jerry, Richard, and Mike Mulkey.  Rob was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Linda Staelens.

Rob will be remembered for his gentle spirit, his wit, and his artistic gifts:  creating beautiful music compilations, designing and building arbors and swings, capturing nature in exquisite photographs, and redeeming and refinishing aged furniture.

                    Acknowledging Death and Grief

Music:  “Great is Thy Faithfulness”

Throughout the years of creating and recording albums, Rob was an encourager, a collaborator and a major appreciator of the music we co-created.  This selection is from “Draw me Nearer”, 2003.

Remembering Rob:  Ed Knight

Music:  “The Garden”, Ruth Moody

Rob often came home with new music he wanted to share with me. Music is one of the places we most often connected, readily and easily.  This song is the last “new musical gift” he gave me; as I was getting ready to leave for work one day last spring, he said, 

“Hey, give this a listen.”  And I did.

                 “O light shine down on me.

You know what I need.

Shine down on me.

Shine down on the garden.

Sweet earth, alive under me.

You know what I need.

Cradle me like a seed as I lay in the garden.

O wise and beautiful tree standing high over me,

Oh the things you have seen.

Tell me your story in the garden.

Tell it to me in the garden

And tell me how long have we slept?

How long have we wept?

There’s work to be done in the garden.

Sky above, so vast and so deep, you know what I need.

Rain down on me.  Rain down on the garden.

O light surrounding me,

Sweet mystery in everything I see,

Come and find me in the garden.

And tell me how long have we slept?

How long have we wept?

There is work to be done in the garden.”

Remembering Rob:  Mary Stedham

Music:  “Illumination”

For years, this is the song Rob specifically requested for his end-of-life service, whenever that might be.  He listened to it often while travelling, and we listened to it in his Hospice room.  In fact, it was playing the last time we were together.  He loved it, and I believe with my whole heart that it brought him peace and release.

Remembering Rob:  Tim VanDuivendyk

Music:  “Fall Down as the Rain”, Joe Crookston

This is a new song for both of us.  In fact, I just heard it for the first time at a concert in March.  I am so glad I can give him this “musical gift” today, with awareness of and love and gratitude for his eternal presence in our lives.

When my life is over

And I have gone away

I'm gonna leave this big ole' world

And the trouble and the pain

And if I get to heaven

I will not stay

I'll turn myself around again

And fall down as the rain.

Fall down as the rain

Fall down as the rain

Turn myself around again

And fall down as the rain.

And when I finally reach the ground

I'll soak into the sod

Turn myself around again

Come up as goldenrod

Come up as goldenrod

Come up as goldenrod

Turn myself around again

Come up as goldenrod

And then when I turn dry and brown

I'll lay me down to rest

Turn myself around again

As part of an eagle's nest

Part of an eagle's nest

Part of an eagle's nest

Turn myself around again

As part of an eagle's nest

And when that eagle learns to fly

I'll flutter from that tree

I'll turn myself around again

As part of the mystery

Part of the mystery

Part of the mystery

Turn myself around again

As part of the mystery

Benediction

Postlude:  “The Rap”, Secret Garden

 Please remain in the sanctuary for visitation with family and friends.  

Light refreshments are provided in the fellowship hall.

The family requests that memorials be given to your favorite charity

in loving memory of Rob Mulkey.

Then, in the evening,

THIS incredible cloud formation...

Rob's "Seal of Approval" on a glorious day! 

I miss him. : (