After a mutual friend passed on recently, my 94 year old friend, Beverly and I had a lengthy email exchange about the merits of cremation vs internment.
I'm copying and pasting her "on the theme of Memento Mori" research results here, the "Hearse Song," popularized during World War 1. We're both old enough to remember having heard some of the lyrics back in elementary school.
… Don’t ever laugh as a Hearse goes by
For you may be the next to die.
They wrap you up in a big white sheet
From your head down to your feet.
… They put you in a big black box
And cover you up with dirt and rocks.
And all goes well for about a week
And then your coffin begins to leak.
… And the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out
The worms play pinochle on your snout.
They eat your eyes, they eat your nose.
They eat the jelly between your toes.
… A big green worm with rolling eyes
Crawls in your stomach and out your eyes.
Your stomach turns a slimy green
And puss comes out like whipping cream.
… You spread it on a slice of bread
And that’s what you eat when your dead.
And the worms crawl out and the worms crawl in.
The worms that crawl in are lean and thin
… The ones that crawl out are fat and stout.
Your eyes fall in and your hair falls out;
Your brain comes tumbling down your snout.
… And the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
They crawl all over your dirty snout.
Your chest caves in and your eyes pop out
And your brain turns to sauerkraut.
… They invite their friends, and their friends too;
They all come down to chew on you.
And this is what it is to die.
I hope you had a nice goodbye.
… Did you ever think as a Hearse goes by
That you may be the next to die,
And your eyes fall out and your teeth decay
And that is the end of a perfect… day
The Carl Sandburg version:
The Old Grey Hearse goes rolling by,
You don't know whether to laugh or cry;
For you know some day it'll get you too,
And the hearse's next load may consist of—you.
They'll take you out and they'll lower you down,
While men with shovels stand all a-round;
They'll throw in dirt and they'll throw in rocks,
And they won't give a dam-m-n if they break the box.
The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out,
They crawl all over your chin and mouth.
They invite their friends and their friends' friends too,
And you look like hell when they're—through—with you.
To which I replied:
Wow, Ms. B, I am now *schooled* on how absolutely gruesome and funny death can be!
I don't totally care what happens to my physical remains. I mean yes, I still care enough that I'd prefer not to want to be turned into powder but that's mostly because my Orthodox Church (not Catholic, not Protestant but still Christian for as long as there has been any kind of Church) teaches there is a promise of Resurrection which includes having some kind of eternal, heavenly physical-like body. So, in order to be properly respectful and responsive to that promise, it's just a better idea not to vaporize the original vessel for the Spirit. So there's something there to restore to life. However the Father does it, it's just a way to show you have faith in the Promise, also a sort of meeting Jesus half way, to keep your original atoms and molecules readily available in one spot, for whatever it is that comes next.
And for you, Yoshi I would add:
No, can't let it go! You've [potentially, if ancient Fathers like Origen and St. Isaac of Syria, who said, "All the sins of the world are as a handful of dust in the Ocean of God's Mercy" had it right.] got it all exactly backwards.
It's not "the Earth" that "abides." When our nearby sun runs out of fuel and explodes, this planet will be left behind as a charred rock.
It's [potentially] all of us; every "dude" and "dudess," from the oldest and most long forgotten to the last to go that will abide and be remembered.
And Russell Crowe's character in the Gladiator pic was also very close to right. Because we're spiritual beings just having a physical experience, some of our actions and decisions do echo into Eternity. The good ones.
I don't mourn your old associate Cathy for not having left more of a trail for you to find when you came back to the V.A. She sounds like an unsung hero. Someone who did her best and maybe consciously was humble enough to accept that serving the needs of others was her main task in life.
For which she will receive an eternal, heavenly reward.
But I do have to give you a big thumbs up for the Jerry McGuire clip and the whole essay. Beautifully written and as always, fun and engaging to read. I just think you got waylaid with Vladimir and Estragon and lost focus on what we're all really waiting for and looking ahead to.
Beautiful piece.
It resonated deeply upon reading it. Funny that you have eloquently written a soulful piece upon the likes of which l have been reflecting.
Reading this relaxed me. Thanks!
Great Memento Mori, Yoshi. Respice ad finem, my friends.
My mate said " Do you remember your great grandparents ?
I said ... I only have a concept of who they are..
He said " One day your great grandkids will think about you like that"
I do believe that we all shape the world... but not all of us invent world changing tech or such.
I try to just try to make the world a better place :) And not make it a more shit place !
After a mutual friend passed on recently, my 94 year old friend, Beverly and I had a lengthy email exchange about the merits of cremation vs internment.
I'm copying and pasting her "on the theme of Memento Mori" research results here, the "Hearse Song," popularized during World War 1. We're both old enough to remember having heard some of the lyrics back in elementary school.
… Don’t ever laugh as a Hearse goes by
For you may be the next to die.
They wrap you up in a big white sheet
From your head down to your feet.
… They put you in a big black box
And cover you up with dirt and rocks.
And all goes well for about a week
And then your coffin begins to leak.
… And the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out
The worms play pinochle on your snout.
They eat your eyes, they eat your nose.
They eat the jelly between your toes.
… A big green worm with rolling eyes
Crawls in your stomach and out your eyes.
Your stomach turns a slimy green
And puss comes out like whipping cream.
… You spread it on a slice of bread
And that’s what you eat when your dead.
And the worms crawl out and the worms crawl in.
The worms that crawl in are lean and thin
… The ones that crawl out are fat and stout.
Your eyes fall in and your hair falls out;
Your brain comes tumbling down your snout.
… And the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
They crawl all over your dirty snout.
Your chest caves in and your eyes pop out
And your brain turns to sauerkraut.
… They invite their friends, and their friends too;
They all come down to chew on you.
And this is what it is to die.
I hope you had a nice goodbye.
… Did you ever think as a Hearse goes by
That you may be the next to die,
And your eyes fall out and your teeth decay
And that is the end of a perfect… day
The Carl Sandburg version:
The Old Grey Hearse goes rolling by,
You don't know whether to laugh or cry;
For you know some day it'll get you too,
And the hearse's next load may consist of—you.
They'll take you out and they'll lower you down,
While men with shovels stand all a-round;
They'll throw in dirt and they'll throw in rocks,
And they won't give a dam-m-n if they break the box.
The worms crawl in and the worms crawl out,
They crawl all over your chin and mouth.
They invite their friends and their friends' friends too,
And you look like hell when they're—through—with you.
To which I replied:
Wow, Ms. B, I am now *schooled* on how absolutely gruesome and funny death can be!
I don't totally care what happens to my physical remains. I mean yes, I still care enough that I'd prefer not to want to be turned into powder but that's mostly because my Orthodox Church (not Catholic, not Protestant but still Christian for as long as there has been any kind of Church) teaches there is a promise of Resurrection which includes having some kind of eternal, heavenly physical-like body. So, in order to be properly respectful and responsive to that promise, it's just a better idea not to vaporize the original vessel for the Spirit. So there's something there to restore to life. However the Father does it, it's just a way to show you have faith in the Promise, also a sort of meeting Jesus half way, to keep your original atoms and molecules readily available in one spot, for whatever it is that comes next.
And for you, Yoshi I would add:
No, can't let it go! You've [potentially, if ancient Fathers like Origen and St. Isaac of Syria, who said, "All the sins of the world are as a handful of dust in the Ocean of God's Mercy" had it right.] got it all exactly backwards.
It's not "the Earth" that "abides." When our nearby sun runs out of fuel and explodes, this planet will be left behind as a charred rock.
It's [potentially] all of us; every "dude" and "dudess," from the oldest and most long forgotten to the last to go that will abide and be remembered.
And Russell Crowe's character in the Gladiator pic was also very close to right. Because we're spiritual beings just having a physical experience, some of our actions and decisions do echo into Eternity. The good ones.
I don't mourn your old associate Cathy for not having left more of a trail for you to find when you came back to the V.A. She sounds like an unsung hero. Someone who did her best and maybe consciously was humble enough to accept that serving the needs of others was her main task in life.
For which she will receive an eternal, heavenly reward.
But I do have to give you a big thumbs up for the Jerry McGuire clip and the whole essay. Beautifully written and as always, fun and engaging to read. I just think you got waylaid with Vladimir and Estragon and lost focus on what we're all really waiting for and looking ahead to.