I read an article in the paper today about a body that had been found in a creek. The person had been reported missing more than a month ago. Aside from a grotesque and probably squishy corpse, I wondered about the memory that will be held by this individual at the memorial (referred to as a celebration of life).
I wonder because the last time this person was seen alive, he was reported by his friends to be with them while they were heavily drinking and "maybe smoking marijuana." Apparently, he got angry, stormed off and was never seen again until he turned up in the creek. What is a celebration of life like when you know the person disappear while being drunk and high. What is to celebrate? I'm not saying that such a person can have worth celebrating, but with such a downer as a final impression...I don't know.
I've often heard that we need to be careful and treat every day as our last and whatever, and I hate when a cliche really does tell the truth. But I really do hope that whenever I kick off, people can say that I went out in a way that carries some amount of dignity.
Showing posts with label Last Words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Last Words. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Potential Last Words: The First
"I forgot I was in here."
A student who has become synonymous with distraction and disruption was asked to leave class today. Throughout this year, he has belted out a laugh that makes shudders flee my spine only to be replaced by seismic convulsions that lurched my soul. He pulled this little trick again today, and I told him that I was tired of his distraction. He left with the saying, "I forgot I was in here." I picture some idiot sealing his fate by pulling the pin from a grenade with trapped in a bank vault, or a Darwin Award winner who tried to throw a stick of dynamite out a car window-but the window was still rolled up.
"I just forgot I was in here."
I can't say I've acted appropriately in every situation, but I think I have always been aware enough of my surroundings to know when not to do something. And even though this student only got sent to the office, I get visions from Burn After Reading in which characters find themselves stuck in places they never should have been or situations they didn't mean to end up in.
Verdict: these horrible last words would flag a person as clumsy in speech or action, leaving them remembered as a simpleton.
A student who has become synonymous with distraction and disruption was asked to leave class today. Throughout this year, he has belted out a laugh that makes shudders flee my spine only to be replaced by seismic convulsions that lurched my soul. He pulled this little trick again today, and I told him that I was tired of his distraction. He left with the saying, "I forgot I was in here." I picture some idiot sealing his fate by pulling the pin from a grenade with trapped in a bank vault, or a Darwin Award winner who tried to throw a stick of dynamite out a car window-but the window was still rolled up.
"I just forgot I was in here."
I can't say I've acted appropriately in every situation, but I think I have always been aware enough of my surroundings to know when not to do something. And even though this student only got sent to the office, I get visions from Burn After Reading in which characters find themselves stuck in places they never should have been or situations they didn't mean to end up in.
Verdict: these horrible last words would flag a person as clumsy in speech or action, leaving them remembered as a simpleton.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Potential Last Words
I was at a memorial service yesterday for a friend who died at age 28 from cancer. It was a fantastic service and about as light as a memorial can be. Her life was truly celebrated, and that does her as much honor as I can imagine.
During a portion of the service, a note, left behind in her Bible, was read. I suppose it was because of the note that the service could be help in such peace. We were not told when the note was written, if it had been penned during her last times she knew. The idea occurred to me that we don't know when we'll be done, which of our words will be our last, and it got me to thinking of what my last words would likely be. Would they be uplifting, or a complaint? A joke? A noise resembling a young muskrat being stepped on? I suppose that wouldn't really be a last word (Not if you count the gurgling sound).
Lately, I've been so enveloped with life (not in the best of ways), that I've been running dry on material that would be even of slight interest. Therefore, periodically, I will leave you with some potential last words.
During a portion of the service, a note, left behind in her Bible, was read. I suppose it was because of the note that the service could be help in such peace. We were not told when the note was written, if it had been penned during her last times she knew. The idea occurred to me that we don't know when we'll be done, which of our words will be our last, and it got me to thinking of what my last words would likely be. Would they be uplifting, or a complaint? A joke? A noise resembling a young muskrat being stepped on? I suppose that wouldn't really be a last word (Not if you count the gurgling sound).
Lately, I've been so enveloped with life (not in the best of ways), that I've been running dry on material that would be even of slight interest. Therefore, periodically, I will leave you with some potential last words.
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