just another day in the office. designing random signs for our children’s ministry. a powerpoint slide for our skate church. returning phone calls.
opening my browser of choice (firefox, if you were wondering), my google homepage greets me. i skim across my google reader, the weather, and the headlines. first on the list – AP: Ohio Congressman Dies.
“it’s rainy outside, so why not play in the sad realm of death for a bit,” i wonder. i click on the link. the article doesn’t go into how he died…so, probably nothing too traumatic (read: gory). he was old…so maybe that’s why? leaves behind a wife and five kids. wow.
as i started to click the little (x) to close out that window, i couldn’t help but stare at his picture a little bit longer.
i looked in his eyes.
this man is dead.
being the internalizing person that i am, i begin to wonder…did he know love? did he love? was he happy? was he depressed? did he like jesus? the church? did some girl in starbucks ignore him while she was working on some freelance writing?
lots of people die everyday. that’s life (so to speak). but staring at this completely unknown man’s face tugged at my heart and revitalized my desperation, to do what we are all ultimately called to do.
here. look him in the eye. stare into his eyes.
this man is dead.
how do you feel?
Comments
30 responses to “when people die”
I feel sad. Because a dad and a 9-year-old son I know of through friends just died. And looking into this man’s eyes makes me think of them.
I wish I could bring them back. But I can’t.
Anna – I’m so sorry for your loss.
i internalize that kind of stuff a lot too. more so lately with the cancer walk coming up. i look at picture of brandon and i’m like, dude, you died? its extraordinary to know probably multiple times a minute someone loses a loved one. were they loved? were they lonely? did they know jesus? yeah, i ask these questions. am i showing love? am i showing them jesus?
shine
make ´em wonder what you´ve got
make ´em wish that they were not
on the outside looking bored
shine
let it shine before all men
let´em see good works, and then
let ´em glorify the Lord
cheesy but true.
Who loved him…Who did he love…Would he be missed…
I couple of simple questions comes to mind:
Did he know Christ to?
Did he live in the moment?
Was his politics more important than his faith?
Did he tell his loved ones how he felt yesterday and today?
It did not matter that he represented a Red State; however the only color that matters now is Red…..
he kind of looks like my dad…..my dad is in his 70’s and way overweight….it makes me a little scared for him.
just a clarification… I didn’t know those people personally… just knew them through friends. that’s why I identify with their death.
Jesus is pretty powerful. to think he overcame all of this.
one thing i have gotten good at (unfortunately) is attending funerals. i can go through the formailites of visitation and writing notes and cards without thinking twice now. in fact, i quit counting when it (the number of friends, relatives and church leaders who died) hit double digits in six years or so.
today my heart is with a friend from high school who lost her dad this week. i wonder about her dad. i never really heard good things about him, but she says they were healing a lot of hurts at the time of his death. she is struggling and would appreciate prayers this week.
i am reminded life is fragile and we are not given one more day. makes me want to take a deeper breath, enjoy starbucks (a venti!) and spend time just hanging with people i love.
What Legacy did he leave?
I’m currently writing a women’s meeting on dreams and legacies.
(any ideas?) anyone? :)
This was a perfect reminder.
He reminds me of my dad…
Of course, everything does…
ANNE!!! Check your email. NOOOOOWWWWW!
Not sad. But I should, because isn’t Jesus Himself IN LOVE with the human race?
this representative wasn’t the representative for my district, but he represented a district in my state. i found it sad that he was away from home and the people he loved most when he passed. members of his staff found him by going to check his apartment when he didn’t show up at the office. the thought of being alone at that moment is sad… in contrast, a friend’s mom recently passed, and she was surrounded by her husband and kids. her husband actually serenaded her in her final moments here (talk about ’til death do we part’). i can’t imagine a better way to go home to be with Jesus…
Looking into his eyes reminds me that today is a gift. Tomorrow is not promised. It reminds me to live now. For some reason it also reminds me of the millions who die each day. Those whose names will never make the front page of the paper or Google news.
You know what’s awful? Is that I have much more sinister thoughts. A girl I grew up with had a dad who was the pillar of the community, voted “man of the year” once. Everyone loved him. And he beat his daughter in the meantime. I look at the picture and wonder if it is an accurate representation. Does he have any secrets? What was he doing before and after his picture was taken? Is this picture a good likeness of the man he really was. Because he looks gentle, kind, maybe tired or worried? Was something or someone bothering him? Its a good question Anne.
wow, it compels me to actaully do something about the “lost” population. i heard a story today actually where each morning a sr. pastor would put on every one of his pastors desks a copy of the days obituaries….to remind them what they are working for.
How do I feel….strange. When my mother died, I was the first to get to the hospital. I was alone with her body in the room for quite awhile..after I got over the shock of it ….one word kept coming up. carcass. I was in the room with her carcass. I always thought I would want to touch her hand or her hair…but she was sooooo not there. How somebody can be so much, so there , and then gone. It makes me want to hug, shake hands etc..with everybody. (which if you know me doesn’t happen until I get to know somebody :) It made me see the life in people…try and appreciate the good bits of people. Same with looking at that man’s photo. Like a fast montage of how he was held as a baby, playing as a boy, growing into a man, holding his wife’s hand, carrying his children…now he is gone. Hopefully, to the arms of Jesus. geez…it’s too early/late to get this deep.
It’s another reminder of something that God’s been reminding me a lot lately: to live for him fully now, not waiting for the next things. My Mum has had a rare type of cancer recently (currently resting in the Lake District, UK, at the moment) and the biggest difference that it ha made to all of my family’s lives – particularly the ones who know Jesus – is, well, that “man may make plans in his heart, but it is the Lord who decides what he will do”. We’ve got to do what we know we want and should do now. There’s no waiting for the future because who knows what it will bring? Only God. It has really encouraged me to live for God without reservation.
Anne dear, correction: chronologically, 68 is not old. Trust me, the older one gets, the more one redefines “old”.
However, in outlook and spirit, one can be “old” while young. I have a relative that is in his 40s. He is old. He has no joy, contentment or passion. I have another that is nearing 90 and is filled with the zeal of youthful curiosity, seasoned empathy and compassion, motivation and joy.
Life often ends so abruptly. I guess we’d prefer that to a long, painful, drawn out departure. But it makes me think of the dreams, ambitions, and passions that drive us. This man was bright and accomplished. He ran and won a seat in the U.S. Congress, for Pete’s sake! That takes some leadership, communication skills, and drive.
He was once youthful and energetic and full of idealism and goals. Did they turn out as he expected? Was it all worth it? After time did he settle, compromise, or capitulate?
Have I?
I see death often. Sometimes it’s peaceful, while the person is asleep. Sometimes it’s when they have become unconscious. Sometimes it’s fast and horrible. Telling the person’s family is heartbreaking.
I do wonder if these people were happy in life, but I also wonder what they would have done differently if they knew that the end of their life was approaching.
I was with someone as he died recently, my first cardiac arrest, and he was pretty well beforehand. Then he suddenly became very unwell and was clawing at me, begging me to help him. Then he arrested and despite our best efforts he died. His family had been with him earlier in the day. What would they have said if they’d known it was the last time they would see him?
I still see his face, it haunts me. I’m not sure I’ll ever get over it.
It confirms the urgency i have been feeling in my spirit to reach/touch/sit with the lost. I have spent a lot of time over at Friendly Christians blog and forming relationships with some atheists over there. One in particular has edged his way right into my heart. I weep for him/them. It’s been hard. It’s been challenging as they ask hard questions. Some just want to fight – that’s not my interest – but Anne, you’re right – doing what we’re called to do is crucial! We have to! I’m tired of my bubble – I’m bursting out now… None of us are single handedly responsible for anyone’s personal salvation. It’s personal between them and God – but we are responsible to share God’s love…more often w/out words…being Him and adopting His character the best we can. It’s a great mission – it’s a high calling…that’s how I feel
Anne,
Here’s an eye opener… live world statistics. Ever wonder how often a person dies in this world? Is born? The world population changes quickly in under a second…
http://www.worldometers.info/
Scott, ” Was his politics more important than his faith?”
That’s powerful. Would people say that nothing was more important to me than surrounding people with faith, love and hope? Would they be able to say that my ambition to carry on the movement of Christ in the unique way that is inherent to who God made me was the sole purpose of my life? Would people say they felt like they belonged to something greater when they were around me? Or would they say that I was more interested in my own fame than making Him famous?
Reality check … thanks.
A high school friend with whom I lost touch has a genetic disorder which took her mother and will eventually take her as well. She made this comment on her website:
“It’s perfectly naturally for our bodies to break down–why automatically regard it as a tragedy? If we believe in a culture of life, why assume the boundaries of science are finite and that our fellow humans can fix everything that goes wrong? How does this respect the human body’s unimaginable complexity?”
Only God understands the mechanics of life and death completely. I feel confident that when it’s time for me to approach death, God will have it under control. (I pray I feel the same if the time comes I know it’s near.)
This past spring, a great-uncle died. I was not close with him, but his death was difficult for me.
You see, people who are going to spend eternity in torment die each and every day. But it is not every day that I personally know who they are.
It gives you a new perspective on reaching the lost, that is for sure.
I have been blessed. Some of relatives told me that I would never make it out of high school alive. I was lost, and yet I have been shot, stabbed, been in three explosions, contracted spinal meningitis from squirrels, fell twenty-two feet and broke my back, etc. And yet, at age 18, I met Jesus and He became Lord of my life. I am not so accident prone since I have grown physically older.
Yes, I have a wonderful family. I have a sister and father that have passed on. I will be glad to see them when it is my time, but all I want out of life now is to give myself and all that I will be, before that day, to Jesus. In Paul’s own words, “For me to live is Christ…”
I must make sure others can repeat Paul’s words.
I guess what goes through my head when I hear of a death wether I know the person or not is:
we come with nothing and leave with nothing. i guess what you say and do is the only thing you leave here.
Extraordinary post, extraordinary
When I die I very much hope that the decision I made to try and live well, to love the people who kept faith with me and to be as honest as my courage will allow will be vindicated; because heaven knows life is really hard sometimes. I am caught in a strange no-mans’ land between needing to address the practicalities of existence and being convinced of the meaninglessness of that pursuit.