death

Death according to the internet is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. What a blunt way to put it. No feeling in that definition. Death is the 5 letter word that no one wants to hear. It is inevitable. It is tragic. It sucks. Death is a crazy balance of peace and rage. When one's life comes to an end a million thoughts go racing through your mind. The 4 W's & H are perfectly exemplified in death. What? Why? Where? When? and How?  The 5 stages of grief occur immediately.Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, Acceptance.
Death is something that we have been familiar with since we were born. One person dies every 12.1 seconds. But one person is born every 7.4 seconds. With death comes new life. Not necessarily a new physical being but the stories of death give people a new meaning to life. It gives people the will to keep fighting. Death gives other people second chances.
Death has a crazy way of bringing people closer together.
My family has experienced 2 deaths in 2 days. We have 2 funerals to attend. We will mourn the loss of 2. We have 2 more angels in heaven. We have 2 more reasons to continue to live life to the fullest and 2 more reasons to continue to live out their legacy. My grandpa has left behind 11 children. 28 grandchildren.(Sean makes 29, but I'm sure he is holding hands with grandpa in heaven as we speak) 19 great grandchildren(2 on the way) and many friends that he has met along the way.
Our family will be together for the first time in years. Death has a funny way of doing that, of bringing people together. Death has a funny way of making people realize that the silly things we worry about like laundry, dishes, homework, if the grass is cut, if our hair looks okay, and on are merely silly.
So death is not just the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. It is someones, grandma, grandpa, wife, husband, son, daughter, niece, nephew, aunt, uncle, granddaughter, grandson, friend, or coworker. Every person has a story to tell and a life to live and if that person's life is cut short by the 5 letter word we all dread to hear, then it is the people that they left behind responsibility to continue to live out their legacy. It is our responsibility to make sure that person is never forgotten. They will always be with us everyday, it is our responsibility to notice the signs, to listen with open ears, to feel the wind or rain on our face, to bask in the sunshine, to embrace new life for they are now our guardian angels steering us in the direction we need to go.
So let us not be saddened by death, but rejoice their life, rejoice the things they have done, rejoice in the memories that we do have.