It is a feature of life at this stage…coming back to town for the funeral of a close friend. He called a few days before he passed to ask that I speak at the service. There’s a solemn duty, boy. One prepares as seriously as for a major court appearance. Except that you have a whole lifetime of love and fun and doing stuff together. And five minutes to capture… some damn thing.
I had supper with my beloved Harry Lodge last night and talked about death, inevitably, given my challenge and his “expertize”. He urged me again to do the Third Act book, which I insist on calling Dead Next Year. That title tickles him, as it does me. He quoted Camus… I don’t have it quite right but it goes, roughly: Death makes sense out of life. In a goofy way, that’s true. Not nuts about death, believe me, but it does impose a certain order, doesn’t it. Makes you pay attention.
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I LOVE the idea of “Dead Next Year”! I think alot of the grief left behind that has to be dealt with can be refocused on the great examples the departed set and on trying to keep those examples alive in ourselves, in memoriam. We’ve still got them in our minds which could translate to our actions as we move on.
In my previous post I ate one letter – r and one word – shape. I’m spitting them back out.
Enjoyed you Sad Old Days article. One question for you, with arthritis in both knees and spine how can I possibly get any exercise? Every step is an effort. My fingers are in great and I type a lot. Still waiting on stem cell research and hoping for any other suggestions. One thing I can still do well is eat. I know I should eliminate some of the junk but it tastes so good.
I am glad you bring this up. Death is a huge part of life. The only problem is, unless you lose your partner, I don’t think you are qualified to write the book.
I lost my healthy strong, active partner at the age of 61. It has affected me more than any other single thing that has happened in my life so far. And for the non-believers out there, he lost his battle with cancer but he remained active until the last couple days of his life. He went for walks in the hospital. While he could, he did other kinds of exercise too. He never quit walking. But being on the other side, it is much harder to find motivation to be as active. thanks for bringing up the subject no one wants to talk about.