I attended a memorial service this weekend for one of my husband’s colleagues. He was a brilliant Harvard man, loving husband and father to two kids, and his life’s purpose was a mighty one–to eradicate aids in the world.
If Paul had listened to his own memorial, he would have been pleased with what he accomplished in his short life. Not everyone could say that they had found work that they loved; that they had worked tirelessly to get the attention of the world. Not everyone could say that they had a loving family where the word kindness was second nature. Not everyone could say that they had wonderful friends that were lovingly nurtured. Paul had one of those lives.
I was standing in the balcony with my husband looking around this beautiful hall in Harvard University–looking at the crowd of people who had come to say goodbye to Paul. So much intelligence and importance in that one room, and yet so much uncertainty about our own destiny
and death.
And as one professor reminded us that it was Freud who said, that looking at our own death is like looking at the sun–we can only look at it for a few seconds before it becomes uncomfortable. I think we all felt a little uncomfortable in that great hall.
Memorial services are masters at allowing us to stop the mundane chatter in our minds and feel the bigness and preciousness of life–at least, that’s the effect they have on me. They fill me with a sense of urgency to live my life to the fullest. They make me want to shake off the dust of fear that always seems to get in the way of what I want to accomplish.
How about you? What would you like people to say about you when you’re gone?
It’s an interesting question, because it reveals what is important for you. It reveals who you want to be in this life. It reveals your legacy. What is it for you? And, why are you waiting to do it?
I never thought I’d see a room full of Harvard folk wiping away tears–but even them, with all of their smartness were humbled for that short moment by life’s uncertainty. At the end of the service, I think it was the beautiful quote by George Bernard Shaw that hit us all in the gut so deeply…here it is:
This is the true joy in life, being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one. Being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.
Feel free to leave a comment below about what stops you from going after the life you really want. I’d love to hear from you…
{ 0 comments }
Facebook 
Twitter
LinkedIn