The Obituaries Asks "How remarkable are you?"

I originally posted this article in 2012 and then forgot all about it. I think it asks a question that we need the think about. How remarkable must you be before your family or friends will pay to see your life in print?

I am not a reader of the obituaries. However, my husband needs to keep me up to date on the news and sometimes the obituaries catch his interest. No matter how much I beg, he will continue reading like he did not hear me (which is entirely possible). I will admit I like to listen to him.

Obituary for Pere Antoine in the 20 January 1829 
edition of "The Bee" newspaper, 
New Orleans. (Wikipedia)

As for the obituaries, I am amazed at the lives that people have led. This morning it was a Russian woman. She was a refugee during WWII as a small child. She was thrown on a plane with another family and raised by the family as their own. She graduated in cybernetics from university and later worked inside the Kremlin in the archives. She was acquainted with the leaders of Russia at that time. She had lived in the United States for 20 years. Her obituary said that she believed that we must accept our family because they are just that, but friendship must be earned. Then there was a list of friends. I liked that.

Another man was an activist that pushed against the grain and fought to have more minorities admitted to his university. He graduated in the 1960's with a doctorate in Social Science. He sought out minority men and women to introduce as possible candidates for a upper education for many years. He taught at various colleges throughout the United States. I admire a human with a purpose.

So what is my point? We all know that nothing is free. Obituaries were just one of the many services that newspapers provided to their community for free...in the past. But now, if a family or friends want to see those words in print, they must pay. So the question that came to mind was: How remarkable must you be before your family or friends will pay to see your life in print?

Just a thought!

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• Read Obituaries (brandautopsy.com)

Books, history and Vladimir Putin

The Olympic Stadium (Photo credit: MichaelWu)

All those books I read about the founding fathers for the last couple of years has taught me one very clear thing...history is not pretty. I like to think that we Americans have been honest with ourselves when it come to what we have and have not done. But then I realize the honest person cannot say that is entirely so. We tend to gloss over the bad and even justify it as a means to a good end.

When the commentators for the Olympics were discussing the opening ceremonies they spoke of President Vladimir Putin and the "usable history" that was presented to the world, they also spoke of how the president of Russia was even taking a hand in monitoring what was put in text books for the school children. I suppose that there is only so much you can tell children. The brutal facts may have to wait until later.

But I would also like to think that we know, Vladimir Putin knows and world knows that looking at the past can be a very necessary though difficult thing. It is only by facing the ugly facts that we learn so we can make logical and good decisions in the future. No country is exempt!

What do you think?

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