Goodbye, dear friend

We buried Norman today.

His friends and family gathered in Stanton for his funeral, and I’m fortunate enough to have been invited to be part of the service, both as a speaker and as a pallbearer. It was a touching tribute with kind words being shared about the man (or, perhaps more appropriately, The Man) we all loved so much. I was especially fond of his son-in-law Barry’s talk, which included a quote from Yoda (“Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not. Attachment leads to jealousy. The shadow of greed that is.”) and this essay by Robert Hastings called “The Station”:

Cancer can’t stop friend’s love of life

The sign, black magic marker lettering on pink construction paper, tells you everything you need to know about how he has handled his life.

And for Norman, as he sits up in his bed, sucking on a piece of ice, the sign tells you more about how he is handling his death.

Norman has cancer, which started in his stomach and has spread to inoperable levels in other parts of his body. He is dying.