This passage was sent to me via e-mail. Any information
on the author of this would be much appreciated. The author
deserves full credit for this.

KEEP YOUR FORK

There was a woman who had been dignosed with a terminal illness and had been
given three months to live. So as she was getting her things "in order," she
contacted her pastor and had him come to her house to discuss certain aspects
of her final wishes. She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service,
what scriptures she would like read, and what outfit she wanted to be buried
in. The woman also requested to be buried with her favorite Bible. Everything
was in order and the pastor was preparing to leave when the woman suddenly
remembered something very important to her.
"There's one more thing," she said excitedly.
"What's that?" came the pastor's reply.
"This is very important," the woman continued.."I want to be buried with a fork
in my right hand." The pastor stood looking at the woman, not knowing quite
what to say.
"That surprises you, doesn't it?" The woman asked.
"Well to be honest, I"m puzzled by the request," said the pastor.
The woman explained, "In all my years of attending church socials and potluck
dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being
cleared, someone would inevitably lean over and say, "keep your fork." It was
my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming...like velvety
chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie. Something wonderful and with substance!
So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with a fork in my hand and
I want them to wonder, "What's with the fork?" Then I want you to tell them:
"Keep your fork....the best is yet to come."

The pastor's eyes welled up with tears of joy as he hugged the woman goodbye.
He knew this would be one of the last times he would see her before her death.
But he also knew that the woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. She
knew that something better was coming.

At the funeral, people were walking by the woman's casket and they saw the pretty
dress she was wearing and her favorite Bible and the fork placed in her right hand.
Over and over the pastor heard the question, "What's with the fork?" And over
and over he smiled. During his message, the pastor told the people of the
conversation he had with the woman shortly before she died. He also told them
about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. The pastor told the people how
he could not stop thinking about the fork and told them that they probably would not
be able to stop thinking about it either. He was right. So the next time you reach
down for your fork, let it remind you oh so gently that the best is yet to come.