Funerals R Us

In the past six months, our RS presidency has had six funerals to do. Some of the departed were dear old friends who'd live long lives and passed on to their reward. One was a tragic accident, one was a tragic illness, taking loved ones whose families have been left distraught and bereft with sorrow that won't soon be soothed. But, our ward sisters are ready for a break from all this compassionate casseroling. Whew--it's time for folks to stop dying left and right, and let everyone catch a breath. (That sounds flippant...sorry.)

At the latest service, there was a poem on the back of the program that I want to share. It is a little long, and the rhymes are a bit cheesy. I think it may have been written by a relative of the woman we honored. But it has an excellent message and so I include it:

How Do You Live Your Dash?

I read of a man who stood to speak

At the funeral of a friend.

He referred to the dates on her tombstone

From beginning to end.

He noted first the date of birth

And spoke the final date with tears.

But he said what mattered most of all

Was the dash between those years

(1921-2008)

For the dash represents all the time

That she spent alive on earth

And now only those who loved her

Know what that short line is worth.

It matters not how much we own

The cars, the house, the cash;

What matters is how we live and love

And how we spend our dash.

So think about this long and hard

Are there things you'd like to change?

For you never know how much time is left

That can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough

To consider what's true and real,

And always try to understand

The way other people feel

And be less quick to anger,

And show appreciation more

And love the people in our lives

Like we've never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect,

And more often wear a smile...

Remember that this special dash

Might last only a little while.

So, when your eulogy's being read

With your life's actions to rehash...

Would you be proud of the things they say

About how you spent your dash?

I can affirm that the person we remembered at the funeral where this poem was read spent her "dash" in a such a way that the people who knew her throughout her long life will sorely miss her. I knew her only a short time, and I was deeply impressed at her positive nature, her determination to live every single minute to capacity, and her service to others. She was tiny, but powerful. I found out from a mutual acquaintence some of the really tragic circumstances of her life---things that you'd never imagine and that she just overcame and marched onward to happier days. She could have been bitter and hard, but she was relentlessly cheerful and kind. Wow. I hope when they're printing up my funeral program, someone will be inspired to put something as positive as this in it. I hope my "dash" represents that to them.