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My Grandfather passed away last Wednesday.
He was my last remaining Grandparent
and had lived to a ripe old age. His passing was not
really unexpected, his health had been failing as of
late, but that doesn't make it any easier to take. He
was the one for which my middle name (Paul) was given.
I lost my first Grandparent on my
25th birthday, and a short 9 years after that they are
now all gone.
Gone yes, but not forgotten.
One of my fondest memories of him
was going fishing and swimming in the river behind his
house each summer as a child, and how much he loved
to grow things. He always had the biggest garden, just
full of all kinds of stuff.
I do feel fortunate though, for having
the opportunity to get to know all of them as an adult.
Many people only have foggy memories from childhood
to hold with them, but I was lucky enough that they
all lived well into old age.
I still don't think it has really
sunk in. But given some time I know I will come to accept
it.
Times like this really give one pause
to reflect upon the important things in life.
So many people end their lives squirreled away in a
nursing home, as possessionless going out of this world
as they were when they came into it. If not your memories,
what do you really have in a situation such as that?
And even if one is wealthy in old
age, surruonded by everything one desires, what good
does it all do you when you are unable to get around
and use it?
This really goes to emphasize that
the only real thing of value you can ever come to own
are your memories. It is the experiences you
have along the way as your progress through your life
that really enrich you.
Anything physical is not of much importance
at all. It is the relationships we have, the people
we meet, and the things we experience that stay with
us. Everything else is just temporary, ethereal, and
can be taken away or lost in a moment. But what you
have locked away in the grey matter between your ears
is always safe, always there, forever yours, and can
never be taken away or lost.
I'm not saying I'm going to run out
and donate all my stuff to the Salvation Army. No, not
at all. (Mostly because my clothes would not fit
most Japanese people...) What I mean is that I
think this is a good wake up call for me.
We all need "things", but
I think I am going to do my best to trim down my list
of stuff to the things that I really use and need.
When I sit down and really think about it, I would have
to say that the most "valuable" things I own
are my photography gear. Not because it cost a lot of
money, but because it is a conduit for me to go out
and soak up experiences. To go places, experience things,
and make regular deposits to my memory bank.
As Abraham Lincoln so eloquently put
it, "And in the end it's not the years in your
life that count. It's the life in your years."
If I had to choose I would opt for
the latter, but call me greedy, I want both.
--
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Comment 23
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