Creepy? Not in my neighborhood. In the morning we saw Joe push the lawnmower in his front yard; by evening, Joe had joined his ancestors. And Joe was younger than most, and in relative good health.
Less than a year ago a wonderful poet in our Bandon Writers' group died without much fanfare.
Bob Cohen was younger than me! He ended up on the Oregon Coast by way of Chicago, Portland, and many other places. His voice, his presence, is missed. His words, though, his art, lives on.
Later today, I'll be posting a poem on my other blog, Notes, tales. You may want to find his work in libraries and bookstores, and enjoy all that he has written.
Death sends us reminder notices this way.
So, be sure you've done what you intend to do with your life.
Be sure your work is what you want it to be.
Good reminder. Live the life you want, it's the only one we have and we don't know when it will be over.
ReplyDeleteA sobering thought!
ReplyDeleteI don't know why,but, I feel i have missed a lot in this life. planning for the next in advance;)
ReplyDeleteIn the middle of life, we are surrounded by Death... but to me that makes every day precious. In the last year I have lost a number of friends, some older, some younger (one after mowing the lawn, too!). We try to push the thought aside that we also will be called one day, unexpectedly. (A friend of mine has a book with grave inscriptions, often rhymed, about when and how Death chose to appear). It remains incredible that a person is here today and not here tomorrow ... which leads us to the thought, what happens to that which "we" were, our soul? I wish I knew.
ReplyDeleteI think those are the lucky ones, the ones who mow the grass in the morning and are away from this life in the afternoon. That would be my choice. It took my Mother 7 excruciating years to die.
ReplyDeletewe will never outrun deaths hand in this world...live now its all you got...
ReplyDeleteMakes a person realize what is really important! Not the dishes, not the dust on the table.
ReplyDeleteOMG. If I'm doing something on the stove, I won't leave it to go and do something else in case I never come back...the house would catch fire. Live everyday as if it were you last and one day it will be. I'm sure somebody important wrote that but the name escapes me. Everybody wants to go to heaven but nobody wants to die! Call your parents, if you are lucky to have them here, call your kids, call friends you haven't spoken with in awhile, you just never know...I can't wait for the next life....maybe I'll have the use of two good legs but then, maybe I won't have any! Thankful for what I do have and how it has gotten me through these 64 years. Just want to make it to Medicare (65). Hugs
ReplyDeleteGreat advice! Exactly why I live each day to the fullest!
ReplyDeleteGreat post. Death reminds us all what we are living for and helps us keep our priorities in check.
ReplyDeleteWhenever I don't feel well, I always think about what my hubby would need to know if I die...sounds morbid, but as you say, you never can be sure when it's time to go...I actually told my good buddy Donna to please post my demise on her blog and I'll do the same for her! We laughed, but hey, it could happen. So I try to enjoy each crazy day and tell family and friends I love them!
ReplyDeleteA reminder for us all. This past month I sat on a jury for the trial of a young man charged with 4 counts vehicular homicide - 4 15-year-olds were killed. I wrote about it in the A to Z blog challenge because it was such an intense experience that has haunted me (T is for Trial, U is for Undecided, and V is for Verdict). I think Dianefaith may be right -Joe's is the way to go. My mom had Alzheimer's for 10 years before passing in March. Sorry, I think I just wrote a gloomy comment!
ReplyDeleteThat is very sad, but life does end. A woman I worked with lost her husband last year...."and he was younger than me". That line hits home.
ReplyDeleteSo true...I even feel this way about the strange weather we've been having. All the tornados....is it a reminder to make the true meanings of life a priority??
ReplyDeleteSo true...I even feel this way about the strange weather we've been having. All the tornados....is it a reminder to make the true meanings of life a priority??
ReplyDeletewell, I try to be careful. I even use a rubber mat now in the shower cause I think if I fell now it could be serious. but I don't really think that I will go before it's my time. and no matter how careful you are, when it's your time, you go.
ReplyDeleteWe leave when it's time. And, all of us have exactly the same amount of time - one lifetime. Our work is what it is. Mine has always ruled me, not the other way 'round. Sometimes I'm sloppy, sometimes I'm neat. It's who I am. A minute to minute kind of guy, and if I were to try to be different, well I would be; and that would not be me.
ReplyDeleteI think as we walk this journey of life we realize that the only real answer is to be present to the present.
ReplyDeleteMy father-in-law died last week at age 94. I hope I can live as long, then there'd be a chance I could get some more stuff done...or not.
ReplyDeleteI've been thinking lately about that thin line that separates us from death. I've heard too many close call tales. It is a fine line and we can tumble over at any time.
I worked in an emergency room at a Level I trauma center. I'm well aware of how quickly lives can change in an instant. When I say goodbye or good night to a loved one, I make sure my last words to them are loving ones.
ReplyDeletePeople look at me askance when I tell them I'm not invested in longevity. As a single parent who raised two of my three sons alone, without child support, my prayer was that I would survive long enough, at least, to see Jeremy finish high school. I figured, by then, if they had to do so, my sons would manage. The years since then have been a blessing.
ReplyDeleteThe more pain I am experiencing as I age and the more financial distress, since the loss of my job, I find myself telling the Lord, if I can't be productive on this earth - and if I must hurt worse and worse, as I near 67, don't feel bad if you want to take me to make space for a new younger model! I really fill I've completed what I need to do, I've been blessed with three amazing and wonderful sons, I've traveled over much of this world, I was an RN for 45 years, and I finally published my poetry book. Now, can't move without pain and it's virtually impossible to get a goo night's sleep.
Live life to the full today! Thats what I say.
ReplyDeleteMaggie X
Nuts in May
By my cipherin' I figure me and death have an appointment sometime after every SOB in the world is gone. That goal gives me something to live for because there are plenty of them around still.
ReplyDeleteWhen it is time, there is power to slow it, or expedite it.
ReplyDeleteHow right you are. We have lost several friends much younger than us just recently. Live while you can and enjoy. Diane
ReplyDeleteCarpe diem while it lasts. Live your day as if it was your last one, some day it will be.
ReplyDeleteSo far I feel like I have done it my way.
ReplyDeleteI am one of those who when someone asks-"Would you like to----" I just say "sure". We are not guaranteed tomorrow or even the next moment. Best take advantage.
"To be, or not to be, that is the question."
ReplyDeleteWe have also learnt from the unexpected deaths of close friends in recent years, never to take a day for granted.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Last September I blogged about the abrupt illness and death of a very dear friend, entitled TEARFUL TRIBUTE.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear you lost your friends suddenly, Rosaria. :( ♥
ReplyDeleteI agree that numerous experiences with death especially in those sudden or unexpected deaths haunts our memories. Is it because we are older or because we know so many people? Life is precious
ReplyDelete