The Laughing Wolf

Roadside Shrines

No, I am not talking the old shrines of the crossroads and such, but rather the crosses and more that now line our roads. Should something happen to me on my journeys, allow me to ask a question to my executors or anyone else tempted to put up something to mark the spot.

Why in the name of all that is good are you celebrating my death?

What you are doing focuses in on my death, and ignores my life. You are ignoring all that I have been, said, and done in order to dwell on the manner of my passing. Indeed, what you are saying is that all that matters is the spot where, most likely, either I or someone else has royally screwed the pooch. Do you hate me so much that you must focus on that, and not on anything else?

What matters is not where I died, but how I lived. If you must have a shrine, complete with graven images, make it my burial place. Make it something that focuses on whatever little bit of good I’ve managed to do in the world. Celebrate the life in joy and laughter. Do not reduce me to the singularity that is my death.

LW