It feels kind of odd that it is halloween and yesterday was our Prime Minister's mother's funeral. Today a colleague buried her father, and tomorrow another colleague buries her mother.
Just too much death out and about at the moment!
But death is something that simply cannot be avoided, it is the one truly inevitable thing in life.
I went to the funeral today, and really there are two things that have given me food for thought.
The first was it turns out I work in a place where it is not practice to go to the funerals of colleagues family. This is nothing I have given a great deal of thought to, but it seems to me quite natural. Specially when it comes to colleagues one works closely with. Anyway, I went, and have apologised to the colleague whose mother is being buried tomorrow, as two in a row is just too much.
The other was that although I never met my colleague's father, I had heard a bit about him, as he was a pioneer in the field of social anthropology/ethnography here in Norway. It was a lovely service, what we would call a "dignified send off". One thing which was said about him, which I would love to be said about me too when the time comes: everyone is important.
When it comes to what others may say about you at your funeral, I can think of nothing I would like more than that something like that be said about me.
It helps not to be afraid of death, but the challenge is how the inevitability of dying inspires one's living, wouldn't you say?
Hah - found the comment box! Guess that I would also like something said of me like "people were important". But I think I would like the defining characteristic of my life to be that "she lived loved".
ReplyDeleteBecause somehow, I think we live differently if we live as people who are deeply loved. Not talking about a nice feeling or a woo-woo Jesus!
I'm talking about an encounter with the One who created us. Somehow, we live differently when we see our reflection in His eyes. And then realise, people ARE important. x
Perhaps two sides of the same coin, at least for those of us on our side of the coin! It would take a Loved one to recognise another Loved one. For those who haven't seen that side of the coin, at least one should strive for that they recognise that people were important to you.
ReplyDelete