I am in Edmonds, Washington with my friend Kizzie.
Yesterday I spent the day with her and her family and attended her mother’s celebration of life. It was beautiful and emotional. The grieving spouse, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and a multitude of friends—all gathered to honor and remember her. What a send off! To have found the love of your life and marry them, raise a family, enjoy a career of meaningful work (nursing) and be widely praised for your volunteer spirit, generosity, kindness, hospitality and loving spirit. Wow! How do you manage to craft a life where every one joins in sweet accord to honor and praise you at the end of your journey?
The reality is that few can do that. The sad truth is that there are almost always cracks and fissures no matter how perfect things may look from the outside. We can’t all be adored in the way we might like or make all the difference we would have wanted in our lives and the world. All we can do is the best that we can and hope that when the measure is taken there will be more on the plus side than on the minus side.
Will my family and friends meet in sweet accord to give me the memorial send off I would plan if I were there? Probably not. But then it’s really not about the send off. It’s about the day by day one connection at a time that we will be remembered. It’s all we really get and it’s enough.
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