Prelude to Stream-of-Consciousness

[barfle]

I'm pretty sure nobody gets out alive, so, while I hope it's not too terribly morbid, I know full well that one day will be my last.

In the meantime, I hope I've done more good than harm to the society that nurtured me and allowed me the opportunities to prosper as I have. Don't see that we need a whole lot more, except in the details.

[Shapley]

Barfle,

I recall seeing a movie once, I don't recall the name, in which one of the characters, about to be executed, tells his captors that he does not fear death. "I've seen people die, when they are alive, they suffer. Once dead, the suffering stops. Of all those I've seen die, I've not heard one complain of the experience afterward." [paraphrasing again]

[Schmeelkie]

I lost my grandma recently - she was ready to go... My uncle had just gotten a lung transplant last spring, and I think before that she really wanted to go soon so she didn't outlive him. It was weird for a while there when she was often in better health than her son. She made it to 87 - with poor diet growing up and smoking since she was about 20. She never quit, even after the emphasema diagnosis (which, incidentatly is what killed her husband in almost 30 years before). Only in her last year or so did she seem to really quit living, though. She always kept herself busy - traveling until about 5-10 years ago, working on crafts, cookies and helping out 'the old folks' at a nursing home.

My other grandmother is still alive, but started losing memory more than 10 years ago. It's dementia, not Alzheimers, but the end effect is similar. She's pretty much forgot me now - for a while it would take a while before she remembered it was me and not my mom, now I'm not sure she even knows my mom anymore. Otherwise, she's in decent health for an 82-year-old. Again, I think there will be a sense of relief when she passes - I've already been mourning here - the woman she was is long gone.

The sad part for me is that my son won't remember either of them (but a cousin will..) - I'm just hoping now that my husband's remaining grandma lasts a bit longer. She's a hoot! When we married, my husband half-apologized for me inheriting his over-emotional and slightly flakey mom, but I said that it evened out since his grandma is so fun!

I think what's interesting now is watching my parents and their siblings as they realize that they are becoming the eldest generation...

Most of my vacations as a child were to visit relatives. As much as I might have wished to go somewhere cool (Disney, national parks, other countries), I appreciate it now since I got to know all my relatives well. We're doing the same for Pumpkin. there's no time like the present...

[lliam]

But that is the object of long living, that man should cease to care about life.
— Robert Louis Stevenson, from ‘Will o’ the Mill’

You never learn as much in a good life as you do in a hard one.
— Leon Jaselsky, a Ukrainian held in Britain as a prisoner of war during World War II

There are ten or twenty basic truths, and life is the process of discovering them over and over and over.
— David Nichols

It’s just another splinter on the banister of life.
— Bernie Clifton, comedian, following vandalism of his car

=============================================
The world can be said to be divided between those who never learn from their experiences and those that do. Unfortunately, the former invariably make a mess of their lives whilst the others are often boring and uninspiring. The trick is to understand the risks involved and to be willing to accept any consequences as part of ‘life’s rich tapestry’.

Funnily enough, by the time we’ve managed to learn all that we are able to understand, we’re taken out of this life. A rather extreme comparison, perhaps, with the scientist, who having done well in his field, is promoted to a management post, and then has to get on with it. It’s much the same with life in general
Everything in the world is part of a design. Everything has meaning and purpose and a place in the pattern of existence, only it’s not always possible to understand what that design is. Only God can understand the design, because He invented it. It’s like a magic puzzle. We can’t expect to understand everything. Some things are beyond the bounds of human understanding, but if we trust in God and believe in Him, no harm can come to us. We must have faith in our part of the design — in the part He has given us to play, and if it appears dissatisfying to us we must always realise He knows best and that everything is part of a pattern more perfect than any mortal can ever visualise.

[Marye]

I tell great stories of my mother and father to the grandchildren who don't remember them. Schmeelkie, your affection for your grandmother will be what your son remembers and it will be what he passes on to the next generation: stories of someone his mother loved dearly.

This is life after death to me, Shos.

[shostakovich]

I admire the sensitivity spilling out in this thread. It brings us all closer.

I'm particularly glad to see TM has found words of consolation. When I was down in the dumps for a while, I started to favor three works for comfort. When I chose to bathe in misery I listened to the Unfinished or the Tragic Overture. When I chose to distance myself, I listened to Bach's 24 Preludes and Fugues. They worked for me.
Shos

<small>[ 03-15-2006, 06:56 PM: Message edited by: shostakovich ]</small>

[Trumpetmaster]

Shos,
Thanks... I'm feeling better...
Just trying to keep busy and move forward....
and always remember....

There are so many different thoughts and beliefs.
I feel this world is temporary and we are just
"Passin Thru" until we get where our creator
wishes us to be.

That faith and hope is what I grasp and it keeps me moving forward.

Again... Thanks too ALL for their support, and I agree... there is alot of emotions that have spilled out on this thread that ties us together in a special way...

Regards,
TM

[lliam]

Originally posted by TrumpetMaster:
Isaiah 57:1-2

The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death.
-----------------------------------------------

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth (Isa. 53:6-7).

-----------------------------------------------

"Men expect that religion should cost them no pains, that happiness should drop into their laps without any design and endeavor on their part, and that, after they have done what they please while they live, God should snatch them up to heaven when they die. But though the commandments of God be not grievous, yet it is fit to let men know that they are not thus easy." ~ John Tillotson

[Schmeelkie]

TM - that second Isaiah quote brings music to mind - Handel's Messiah - looking forward to Easter when I'll play the second and third parts. Always thought it was funny however, that the way he set it up you get 'for we like sheep' for quite some time before you get to the 'have gone astray'. I always think, Yeah, I like sheep, too.

[Shapley]

Oops! Posted this in the wrong thread!

<small>[ 03-16-2006, 10:53 AM: Message edited by: Shapley ]</small>

[treebeau]

Hey all,

Been nearly 2 weeks since I've even been able to drop by for a visit here.

This thread and my two week absence got me thinking. How will the rest of us know when one of our BBB friends dies?

I know a guy who lives in LA. He is terminal with cancer. Supposedly he wrote a program that runs on his computer that is a sort of "death informer". Every day/week/whatever, he clicks on something to basically indicate "I'm alive." If he doesn't, and a certain amount of time passes, his computer will automatically send out a notice to a list of recipients, who can then check.

Anyone know if such a thing exists on the internet? If so, I would like to register myself and add some of you BBB friends to my list. Since I live alone and none of my nearby friends know of my participation here, you would never know otherwise.

But, you wouldn't have ol' treebeau around to bug ya anymore.

Regards,
Tim B.

[barfle]

Whew! I was concerned that you might have suffered some terrible project accident.

[Shapley]

T/B

I've wondered the same thing. Occasionally, one of our posters will disappear for a time (Annette, tan, Owlice), and we have no idea how their doing. I usually assume Annette is off on another trip, and we'll have a travelogue to view when she returns. tan is usually the victim of bad internet service, although her recent silence is a bit longer than normal. Owlice is usually lurking, she just goes long times without posting.

Of course, I wouldn't want a computer program sending out my obituary just because I took an extended vacation!

V/R
Shapley

[DavidS]

Originally posted by Shapley:
T/B

I've wondered the same thing. Occasionally, one of our posters will disappear for a time (Annette, tan, Owlice), and we have no idea how their doing. I usually assume Annette is off on another trip, and we'll have a travelogue to view when she returns. tan is usually the victim of bad internet service, although her recent silence is a bit longer than normal. Owlice is usually lurking, she just goes long times without posting.

Of course, I wouldn't want a computer program sending out my obituary just because I took an extended vacation!

V/R
Shapley

I wonder if the BBB management could set up a facility for those interested (at an appropriate cost?) to provide some additional information (e.g. phone number, way to contact next of kin, etc.) to be used in a discrete fashion only in the event of no "sign of life" over a predetermined period set by the poster?

[DavidS]

Sorry - my "sign of life" got double-loaded, so I deleted the second one...

<small>[ 03-16-2006, 12:46 PM: Message edited by: DavidS ]</small>

[Selma in Sandy Eggo]

Dead file - OK, I volunteer. I will keep a list of who you are, where you are, next of kin, and contact information for you and NOK. Phone numbers. That way, if anyone wonders where you've gone and asks me, I'll know where to start looking.

I've wondered where Lioness has gone to. She'd be an even better list-keeper.

We should have alternate list-keepers, preferably in other parts of the country/world. Volunteers, please?

Anyone who wants to be on the list, PM me your info and your instructions as to who is to be allowed what access to your info.

[OperaTenor]

If it hadn't been for Donna, who here would've known about my little accident 3 years ago?

This is something that's occurred to me also.

A slight elaboration of David's idea: What if we could esablish a sort of directory for those of us on the BBB who wish to participate, make it some sort of "members only" area, where there would be information like; an alternate way of contacting us - maybe include NOK or friends, some sort of "drop dead" time limit - where if you haven't heard from a certain person in X number of weeks, it would be a good idea to check on them.

Access and membership to the directory would need to be by total consensus: If one of us objected to a certain person's entry to the system, then they're out.

For B.com, it would entail adding another feature to the website; otherwise, it would be self-policed by us posters.

<small>[ 03-16-2006, 05:00 PM: Message edited by: OperaTenor ]</small>

[shostakovich]

If I leave for an extended period, I will let you know. If I die, you will know by a month of silence --- or less, should Bush cause another disaster without my bashing.
Shos