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Well, At Least I Watched a Lot of YouTube
A good friend died recently. He was 79 years old, but mostly seemed younger than his years.
By profession, he was a nuclear engineer; one of the smartest people I’ve ever known. He was also perhaps the most soft-spoken person I’ve ever met, and he rarely spoke. When he did, you knew it was time to listen.
I spent many afternoons sitting on his couch visiting with him and his wife. He offered wise counsel about how to live life.
After retirement, he didn’t go quietly into the night. He used his extra time to be engaged in our community politically, socially, and religiously. He was never one to just watch life go by. His active participation in life, I think, is what helped him stay sharp.
And then, just about a year before his passing, he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. The chemotherapy stalled the tumor’s growth, but it also sapped his energy for life.
It was painful to watch.
Because now I’ve lost two good friends to brain tumors. And I’ve realized something about the way life fades out.
I don’t know that I’ve experienced more loss than the next person my age, but someone I maintain a deluded fantasy that the end of life is something abrupt; that it always ends in a sudden collapse or dramatic turn. Most…
