Our care should not be to have lived long as to have lived enough. ~ Seneca
I went to a funeral this morning. The church was packed and the service was really honouring of the one who died. It took place in my childhood church which looks like a teepee or swirly ice cream cone. The son giving the eulogy showed his emotions but let people know it was ok that he was. I have been to many funerals in my life and this one touched me. A friend who was also present mentioned that a Catholic funeral really is meaningful.
Funerals are really for the living. We go to pay tribute to the deceased but at the same time we are there to comfort those who live on and to let them know that their loved one was important. Life at fifty is going to be fabulous because so many people do not live that long. I have been to a funeral where the deceased was 94 years old, and I have been to a funeral for an infant who did not make it to term. Both of those people had an impact on my life. My grandmother, of course, was incredibly influential. Her funeral was an opportunity to celebrate almost a century of living. The infant who I never know on this side of his mother’s womb, still lived enough to create in me a deeper faith and a more cherished value for life.
When I think about life, I don’t think about length so much as breadth or depth. How deeply am I engaged with people? How committed am I to someone or something? What do I do with this gift I am given? I believe that I can say that I have truly lived my life. I have not let it just pass by without engagement or celebration. Sometimes, I suspect, I live TOO fully but given the alternative and not knowing when this earthy life will fade, I would not change up things much. Live. Live fully. Live joyously. Life with eyes and heart wide open. Live enough. This is not a dress rehearsal as the old adage goes.
Peace,
Suzanne
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