As many of you know my brother passed away last month. His wife is planning a memorial service. I was asked to write the obituary. I am both honored and deeply saddened. Honored to be asked and saddened to write those fateful words. Obituaries are normally just stark statements of facts. That is true, largely in part, to the constraints of the newspaper itself and budget. Having anything published in the newspaper is quite costly. The newspaper sets guidelines of their own and will edit your writing to fit within those guidelines. And so, keeping all this in mind I am struggling to put the words down. How stark is an obituary and usually the last words written about a person. A eulogy is spoken and those words are forgotten over time. An obituary however lasts forever. Future generations can look them up and read them. I have done just that with some of my own ancestors. To a person with an interest in genealogy they can be invaluable. They can, and often do, contain many vital clues about a persons life.
It is a cruel twist of fate that I Should be asked to do this. The first thing anyone has ever asked me to write for them and it my own brothers' obituary. I took to writing blogs and such as a means of entertainment for myself. I also thought of future generations and wanted to share. I am flattered when others tell me I have done well or that they enjoyed my words. On some level I am an aspiring author, although my aspirations are not very compelling. I never thought of writing an obituary.
The condensation of a person's life,especially a person you love, is a difficult task. To strip away all the drama and complications in our lives and just state the facts can leave us feeling hollow. That is what an obituary does and it seems to be an injustice. It is the practical that constrains me however. I must stay within the guidelines. My brother was so much more than an outline. Can that not be said about us all ? And in the end what will be printed ? An obituary. An outline of our lives always met with sadness. The last word. If it were up to me we would be writing about his life, not his death. But then death is a part of life and the circle is completed. Rest in Peace brother. The words may never be published but they will be written. I will write your story, as it is a part of mine. You will not be forgotten. The last word has not been written.
It is a cruel twist of fate that I Should be asked to do this. The first thing anyone has ever asked me to write for them and it my own brothers' obituary. I took to writing blogs and such as a means of entertainment for myself. I also thought of future generations and wanted to share. I am flattered when others tell me I have done well or that they enjoyed my words. On some level I am an aspiring author, although my aspirations are not very compelling. I never thought of writing an obituary.
The condensation of a person's life,especially a person you love, is a difficult task. To strip away all the drama and complications in our lives and just state the facts can leave us feeling hollow. That is what an obituary does and it seems to be an injustice. It is the practical that constrains me however. I must stay within the guidelines. My brother was so much more than an outline. Can that not be said about us all ? And in the end what will be printed ? An obituary. An outline of our lives always met with sadness. The last word. If it were up to me we would be writing about his life, not his death. But then death is a part of life and the circle is completed. Rest in Peace brother. The words may never be published but they will be written. I will write your story, as it is a part of mine. You will not be forgotten. The last word has not been written.
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