Character & Quirks

Last Friday, my grandmother passed away at the age of 95. She was a steadfast woman in every sense of the word. I'm still processing the news, and I'm not sure how to effectively or appropriately eulogize her in a public venue like this. We will mourn her passing and celebrate her life with her (and our) family and loved ones in the coming days.

Earlier this month, I also learned of an prior co-worker's passing. They passed much at a much younger age, and much more unexpectedly. I attended their services remotely (one comfort of our present age is that livestreamed services can be a blessing when travel isn't possible).

As I've remembered my friend and co-worker, and as I continue to remember my grandmother, I've been struck by what it is we remember of one another. The overwhelming majority of us do not live lives that will be recorded in the annals of history, where our deeds & misdeeds are debated by professors and their students.

For most of us, what will be remembered by those who mourn us and carry us forward in their hearts is our character and our quirks. That's it, really: how we treated our family and friends and strangers and colleagues; how we comported ourselves; our weird little silly and infuriating idiosyncrasies.

Character and quirks. That's what makes up eulogies. That's what makes up life. That's what is remembered after death.

Cultivate your character, and cultivate your quirks. That's what leads to an abundant life. It's all we have to share.

I'll be unavailable for the rest of this week. In case you didn't see them, I conducted two interviews recently.

I spoke with B.K. O'Connor about her debut novel, Eve:

And I spoke with Amar D. Peterman about his book, Becoming Neighbors.

I'll check in soon. Be kind, to yourself and others. Good luck out there.