After reading the rather dry and stilted obituaries of some of my friends, I felt sad.
The short recording of their statistics did not capture the essence of their colorful lives.
I wondered if they had written their own obituaries, what they would have said. I remembered being in a hospice workshop once where the leader gave us the assignment of writing our obituaries.
At first we were shocked. But soon we discovered the purpose. We could not hope to help others face their death if we were not willing to face our own.
And in writing what we would hope others remembered about us, we discovered not death, but life. If we had found the life we hoped for, we could find satisfaction in the memories.
If we had not arrived at where we wanted to be, we hoped we would have more time to make course corrections.
Today I was brave. I wrote my obituary. I reflected on what I would want people to know. And I reflected on the glorious next steps in what I believe will be an ever expanding Eternal Life.
I sent it to my husband with the notation “If you ever need it.” If I go first, perhaps he will share it. But to give you a little preview, this is the first paragraph.
“Carolyn Priester Jones has a new body! Having completed the work God appointed her to do on earth, she has begun the next phase of Life.”
And here is the ending, which, for me, will be a new beginning.
“Carolyn’s truest desire was to share The Love of God wherever she went and to encourage others to know God.
Her life was filled with Love and Joy. She would want the same for everyone still on earth!
You will show me The Path of Life. In Your Presence is Fullness of Joy!
Psalm 16:11”
