“Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies within us while we live.”
– Norman Cousins (1912 – 1990), American essayist, long associated with the “Saturday Review”
You see, I’m named after them. A wonderful aunt and uncle who were, in turn, second parents to my parents, summer hosts for my sister and me and just generally good, caring, honest people.
He’s been gone for years, and she is knocking at the door after a massive stroke early on Tuesday.
I remember fishing all day, learning to clean fish, laughing (usually because of being tickled!) and thinking that they were larger than life.
As I contemplated what may be inevitable today, I flashed back to the 1960’s — to Lake Rathbun, to a connection to extended family that today, with kids of our own and miles between us, is unnecessarily constrained.
As the generation ahead of us checks out with increasing velocity, we ought to commit to keeping alive the parts of us that were theirs — and to passing them on to ours.
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