Final Goodbye

Editor’s note: The author would like to thank everyone for their condolences, thoughts and prayers.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Sadly, everything felt so real. From the lonely tears in my brother’s eyes, who sat on the pallbearers’ bench to my mother silently weeping, we all sat sadly. I would have paid anything for anyone to just make it a bad dream that can be erased. Every blue moon or so, everyone has bad dreams. This one I wanted to wake up and just go back to normal. But it wasn’t a bad dream. There will be no normal.
This morning, I woke up with headache but my head was not in any physical pain. It was probably more my heart. I don’t know right now. I just can’t believe that I had to say a final goodbye to my uncle. No one came to wake me. As, you’d expect to get saved from a bad dream. My family and everyone were there. I went around to hug everyone. So I know it was a sad reality.
I wrote a special piece for him. Then stood and recited it to the crowd. I didn’t stutter, stumble, say “ummm,” or croaked. I felt it was a huge honor bestowed upon little me. My family is big, and I’m quite sure they could have had easily picked a better person. But I wanted to speak for him. I wanted to let people know that we had a lot of great times. In my uncle’s 86 years he taught us about the importance of family. He gave us strength. He made us strive for an education. In the past year he saw four of us earn degrees and the little ones got their diplomas. He wasn’t rich, but he always gave something to everyone (in school) at Christmastime. I’m not mad at anyone that he’s gone. Actually I can’t complain. Because in his 86, I enjoyed 23 years of great time with him and I learned so much. It was a blessing to know him. Can’t complain at all. Thankfully. Gratefully. I’m just sad because I’ll miss him.

--Dedicated to James Elwood, 1920-2007