GONE.
One of my old men died. He wasn't that old. Everyday at work there is a parade of retirees that come in to visit and sit down for coffee. Usually a cup or a half cup.
He always sat in the corner chair that squeaks. It was his chair.
He had cancer. First in his lungs - very rare and deadly. Then in his brain. The same statistics. He fought. He threw everything he had at it. His body became so frail. Finally it was not enough.
He died today -- just around 4pm.
I don't know how many times we mentioned him, each account keeps running though my mind. I was so hasty to leave for the day. The other day. I barely said two words to he and his wife. I neglected to sit and sip a bit of coffee.
That is something I am learning. With the antiques. They have learned to sit and sip. Life is waning constantly.
He was a very smart man. And he ALWAYS did what he said he would. Often we would discuss a certain item, he said he had it and later in the day he would produce just the thing. The rods in my closet he cut.
It is very hard to come to terms with the fact that many of my dearest relationships here will not last very long. That hurts. This hurts.
One of my old men died. He wasn't that old. Everyday at work there is a parade of retirees that come in to visit and sit down for coffee. Usually a cup or a half cup.
He always sat in the corner chair that squeaks. It was his chair.
He had cancer. First in his lungs - very rare and deadly. Then in his brain. The same statistics. He fought. He threw everything he had at it. His body became so frail. Finally it was not enough.
He died today -- just around 4pm.
I don't know how many times we mentioned him, each account keeps running though my mind. I was so hasty to leave for the day. The other day. I barely said two words to he and his wife. I neglected to sit and sip a bit of coffee.
That is something I am learning. With the antiques. They have learned to sit and sip. Life is waning constantly.
He was a very smart man. And he ALWAYS did what he said he would. Often we would discuss a certain item, he said he had it and later in the day he would produce just the thing. The rods in my closet he cut.
It is very hard to come to terms with the fact that many of my dearest relationships here will not last very long. That hurts. This hurts.
Death is never easy. I struggle with the concept more often than I probably should. Over the last year or two I have been looking a little deeper than before. I guess I just want to know the answers. Anyway, this was on the last page of the last book I read for my thesis. I re-read it the other day, and when reading your post I was reminded of it. The book talks about the need for a greater understanding of our inner-Self, and Oneness (all of us being of one being, one connected spirit, etc.).
ReplyDelete"We are travelers on a cosmic journey - stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. But the expressions of life are ephemeral, momentary, transient. Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, once said,
This existence of ours is as transient as autumn clouds.
To watch the birth and death of beings is like looking at the movements of a dance.
A lifetime is like a flash of lightning in the sky,
Rushing by like a torrent down a steep mountain.
We have stopped here for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment, but it is transient. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. If we share with caring, lightheartedness, and love, we will create abundance and joy for each other. And then this moment will have been worthwhile."
peace
~Z