If this pandemic has done anything, it has made many of us face our own mortality. I have friends who have lost spouses, cousins, friends. The obituary list in my local Sunday paper seems longer than previous years. E-mails at work come in labeled “Sad News.”
I learned at a young age that people can die at any time, at any age, and in a variety of ways. I have a large extended family, and we have faced our share of tragedies. I do not see this as a curse. Every family has losses. In some ways, I see these experiences as blessings. I have watched family members lose their children, their spouses, and their siblings, but I have also watched them live meaningful and mostly happy lives afterwards. We learn from each other. When my dad died, I heard my mom tell herself, “Now I have to follow my own advice.” She had helped countless friends and family members deal with losing their loved ones.
I had two aunts who, with very few words, taught me much about life and death. One aunt had inoperable cancer. She joked with friends about her fate. She was extremely sick, but she never complained. She had a strong faith in Christ, and she lived it to the very end.
She taught me how to die, and another aunt taught me how to live. She lost both a son and a husband, but her faith and her sense of humor (she could make the funniest faces) allowed her to enjoy the rest of her life. When her second husband contracted Parkinson’s Disease, she was his caregiver. We were afraid she would die from the stress of taking care of him. When I told her how worried we were, she responded, “What better way to go?”
This month, I keep thinking about St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians. When writing about whether he would rather live or die, he wrote, “I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account (1:23-24).”
Have faith (and humor), everyone.