For 2009 I feel it is fitting to end my last blog of the year with a tribute to my dad, Larry Beckham. After a courageous 9 month battle with cancer, he passed away on December 11th . I had 32 years with him and many stories to tell. My brother and sisters and I have been working around the clock preparing for the many services and details surrounding his death . In the midsts of that we'll stop and say, "oh! remember when he says this... or here is another dad-ism."
Words cannot express the void this means to me and it saddens me that he is not here with us. However, I was able to spend his last moments surrounding him with family and that was so valuable to me. The scripture that kept coming to mind the morning he passed was, "Precious in the sight of the Lord are the death of his saints." (Psalms 116:15). Though the cancer that took him was horrible, Precious is a word I would use to describe watching my dad pass from this life into the arms of Jesus, despite the illness. I never, never understood that scripture (it even angered me to read it at times) until, I watched my father.
Words cannot express the void this means to me and it saddens me that he is not here with us. However, I was able to spend his last moments surrounding him with family and that was so valuable to me. The scripture that kept coming to mind the morning he passed was, "Precious in the sight of the Lord are the death of his saints." (Psalms 116:15). Though the cancer that took him was horrible, Precious is a word I would use to describe watching my dad pass from this life into the arms of Jesus, despite the illness. I never, never understood that scripture (it even angered me to read it at times) until, I watched my father.
Someone I met this week suggested the book, "90 Minutes In Heaven". I am reading it now and enjoying it - thanks for the suggestion. Though we prayed fervently for a miracle, we believe that God has a plan and He will never leave us, even when faced with death. This hope has really carried me the last week. The photos on this blog are some of he and I in the younger years; the last is of us in May, only a few months after he discovered the cancer. Isn't he handsome?
He was a very talented man; many would say this who knew or worked with him...a negotiator, a seasoned trainer, sales extraordinaire, networking professional. I got the opportunity to meet a lot of people who did know and work with him throughout his early career with The Southwestern Company. Someone shared on their alumni BLOG the following,
He was a very talented man; many would say this who knew or worked with him...a negotiator, a seasoned trainer, sales extraordinaire, networking professional. I got the opportunity to meet a lot of people who did know and work with him throughout his early career with The Southwestern Company. Someone shared on their alumni BLOG the following,
"He could hold the attention of people longer in one setting than just about anyone I have know at SW. His timing was impeccable and delivery was well received and heart felt. He was probably one of the most gifted orators in the history of the Southwestern Company...Larry, was very polished and dignified in the way he carried himself. He prided himself in developing a different and better breed of sales people than the rest of the company. He was a fierce competitor." (SW)
.......
"I worked with Larry in 1988-1990 when I sold for Southwestern and felt very blessed and privledged to have learned from one of the GREATEST salesmen in the world. Larry was a master at getting you to stretch yourself and be better than you thought you could. Those of us who knew him and knew him well strived to be like him." (SW)
......
"I received your message on Saturday whilst skiing with my family in Colorado and I was absolutely stunned and shocked. My wife knew how highly I regarded Larry and what an impact he had on me during our meetings together in London. The fact is, I rarely meet men that I admire and that inspire me personally. That can’t be said about Larry. He was just so genuine, decent and true. He once suggested to me that I should mentor more young folks in business, but, unbeknownst to him, I secretly wanted him to be my mentor. I knew from the first moment I met I him I could learn so much form him – not just in business, but in the way a man should carry himself and motivate and respect others. I know if could be half the man Larry was I would be a great man." (Lit. Support Industry)
Many years later, he started his own company and ran it successfully with his wife, Shelly in Houston, TX called, The Beckham Group. I am very proud of my dad, though I realize he was not perfect. But, this obviously did not define our relationship as father-daughter. As I got older, I began to see him for who he was as a person, not just his accomplishments. It was our conversations that I will remember most and how he engaged me intuitively. I will miss him in ways I can't even comprehend today. But for now, I am just remembering him as a man, a father. In fact, it was he that encouraged me to start my own photography business, ever so gently. He had a knack for seeing in others their greatest potential, even when they couldn't see it themselves. He was a dreamer and he could almost see the dreams that were hanging over others lives, calling them out. Thank you for sharing in this season of life with me. We were able to have a video done to remember him and you can watch it here: MEMORIAL VIDEO
* Memorial Service will be held on Friday, Dec. 18th at 1pm at Belmont Church, Nashville, TN.
