Uncut and Public.
It's almost March 15. And March 15th will mark the one year anniversary, the one year anniversary of the death of someone that I had known for years, someone I was never very close to, someone who's death I was afraid was going to sadden my birthday beyond belief, someone who I didn't really start to miss until July and Lake Geneva when he wasn't there.
And I've been thinking about death. And everyone is mortal, why shouldn't we?
I started thinking after a chance conversation- Jessi and I went to noodles&co., and I mentioned that hey Chris is in town, but he's very busy, probably at the funeral. Naturally curious (funeral?) I told her about the story, about how Grant's brother had died in a car accident, Grant Erickson's brother, and "Holy shit! Clint Erickson?!?! Ben Trisco's cousin was dating someone with that name who was just in a really horrible accident!!"
And when people talk about an afterlife and a soul, that's what I think it is.
I think it's how you are remembered. It's how people you don't even know, people you've never met, know who you are, people whose lives are affected by your life and death, even if you've never seen their face or heard their name. You keep living and changing the world, you impact the lives of others like dropping a rock in a pond, the ripples spread out and out until the effects are inscrutable, but somewhere, some fish is feeling it. Feeling your soul and your life and the impact of you brush up against them.
Because now, now that you've read this, you've just been impacted by three lives.
Sam Clay died a year ago in a car accident, he missed his turn coming home from his girlfriend's house, and struck a telephone pole, dying instantly. I was never good friends with him, and didn't even think at all about the impact that his life had had on mine until he was missing from the tightness of the LakeGeneva community.
Clint Erickson died more recently. He was struck by a drunk driver, his brother was the roommate of one of my best friends, and he was dating the cousin of someone from my school. Talking about this to another one of my best friends made me realize how broad of an impact someone's life can have, even without them knowing or trying to impact others.
And my own life. If you've read this far, I hope you can take something away from this. I hope you can take that when people die, they aren't with us physically anymore, but their soul still is, the soul of them that continues to live in how their lives have and continue to affect our own. And I hope that we can continue to remember everyone we know who has died, and that we can acknowledge how their lives have affected and are still affecting us, and to take comfort in the fact that they will always live on, living on forever in our minds and hearts and memories, in our actions, our conversations, and our thoughts.
thank you.
And I've been thinking about death. And everyone is mortal, why shouldn't we?
I started thinking after a chance conversation- Jessi and I went to noodles&co., and I mentioned that hey Chris is in town, but he's very busy, probably at the funeral. Naturally curious (funeral?) I told her about the story, about how Grant's brother had died in a car accident, Grant Erickson's brother, and "Holy shit! Clint Erickson?!?! Ben Trisco's cousin was dating someone with that name who was just in a really horrible accident!!"
And when people talk about an afterlife and a soul, that's what I think it is.
I think it's how you are remembered. It's how people you don't even know, people you've never met, know who you are, people whose lives are affected by your life and death, even if you've never seen their face or heard their name. You keep living and changing the world, you impact the lives of others like dropping a rock in a pond, the ripples spread out and out until the effects are inscrutable, but somewhere, some fish is feeling it. Feeling your soul and your life and the impact of you brush up against them.
Because now, now that you've read this, you've just been impacted by three lives.
Sam Clay died a year ago in a car accident, he missed his turn coming home from his girlfriend's house, and struck a telephone pole, dying instantly. I was never good friends with him, and didn't even think at all about the impact that his life had had on mine until he was missing from the tightness of the LakeGeneva community.
Clint Erickson died more recently. He was struck by a drunk driver, his brother was the roommate of one of my best friends, and he was dating the cousin of someone from my school. Talking about this to another one of my best friends made me realize how broad of an impact someone's life can have, even without them knowing or trying to impact others.
And my own life. If you've read this far, I hope you can take something away from this. I hope you can take that when people die, they aren't with us physically anymore, but their soul still is, the soul of them that continues to live in how their lives have and continue to affect our own. And I hope that we can continue to remember everyone we know who has died, and that we can acknowledge how their lives have affected and are still affecting us, and to take comfort in the fact that they will always live on, living on forever in our minds and hearts and memories, in our actions, our conversations, and our thoughts.
thank you.