how will you be remembered?

[JGirl]

imagine that you have passed on.
your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, children, exes - all those that you affected in some significant way (good or bad) - have gathered together in remembrance of you.
each will take their turn at the podium.
what are some of the things you think would be shared?

 

[Gaze]

Actually, I'd rather not be remembered with words. Prefer silence. It's like a ripples on the water. I'd rather people enjoy the waves, and not worry about the one drop of water or droplets of water which started it. I dread the idea of a large service where people are gathered to remember me. If someone wants to remember me, just lay a single yellow rose on my memory stone. I'm good with that.

 

[JGirl]

Actually, I'd rather not be remembered with words. Prefer silence. It's like a ripples on the water. I'd rather people enjoy the waves, and not worry about the one drop of water or droplets of water which started it. I dread the idea of a large service where people are gathered to remember me. If someone wants to remember me, just lay a single yellow rose on my memory stone. I'm good with that.

as i read this i imagined a small group by a brook or a pond, all silent, all inside their memories of you

 

[knight in battle]

People will say that I always knew what was most important at any given moment.

 

[5r6jhd]

It depends on who you ask. I imagine you will hear some really spectacular things and then some not so spectacular things. It's all about who you are to me, yo.

 

[JGirl]

i used to think i wanted each person to share something i said or did that impacted them but the older i get the more 'not me' that seems.
now i think i'd rather be remembered quietly, privately - as [MENTION=1669]Genuine[/MENTION] said.

 

[barbad0s]

i used to think i wanted each person to share something i said or did that impacted them but the older i get the more 'not me' that seems.
now i think i'd rather be remembered quietly, privately - as @Genuine said.

indeed, that is more "genuine", lol.

 

[ZcM4xzkjgzCjytBc]

I know this sounds T, but it's true:
I don't care how people remember me. I think it's because I don't expect people to think of me.

 

[894tt3h9]

I would rather people say those things to me while I am alive rather than dead. If I am dead it's not like it matters to anyone except who I left behind. I think when I am approaching my death I will have a living wake. More people should do that. After all my funeral is for me, right?

 

[the]

I won't. They will all forget.

 

[Cornerstone]

After all my funeral is for me, right?

[video=youtube;es0d7DhwIoo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=es0d7DhwIoo[/video]

Crappy quality but it was the only one.

 

[Lemonworld]

Read something I wrote, and meant, and loved. It might only be one or two sentences, but it would be better than a whole lot of awkward speeches. People can never do justice to a person's life up there on the podium, try as they might.

 

[Cees klumper]

I know this sounds T, but it's true:
I don't care how people remember me. I think it's because I don't expect people to think of me.

Same here, I have no idea and hope people don't spend too much time and energy on remembering. In any event I don't think it would be much.

 

[JGirl]

Read something I wrote, and meant, and loved. It might only be one or two sentences, but it would be better than a whole lot of awkward speeches. People can never do justice to a person's life up there on the podium, try as they might.

i think to some degree those up on that podium are speaking for themselves. expressing to share their part of that person, at least that is why i would do it. (mind you, i would avoid doing it simply because i have a morbid fear of pubic speaking)

 

[Gaze]

Read something I wrote, and meant, and loved. It might only be one or two sentences, but it would be better than a whole lot of awkward speeches. People can never do justice to a person's life up there on the podium, try as they might.

Yeah, that would be a great way to remember someone, is to share something they like such a poem. That would be good enough.

 

[Azazel]

No service=no gathering. I hate that, to be honest, and don't want it for myself. Remember me by the mountains, by the river, at home or don't remember at all. Why people gather to remember - I'm not sure, personally I can't talk in these situations. Those who are incredibly important to me won't talk much, if at all. And I like it that way. When someone passes away the words can't describe, I think.
When I was in my early teens I imagined something dramatic, even profound reactions. I secretly desired it, I confess, because I felt very undervalued and invisible in my daily life. As years passed by I stopped to think about it and instead wanted to exist in the minds of those who exist for me, no more. I know there won't be poems, songs, etc. There will be some revelations, perhaps. I'd prefer silence, though.

 

[AhSver]

@Ada . The mountains you admired will remember you. The rocks you used to hold and touch will remember your hands. The paths in the woods will remember your footsteps longer than a human memory could hold. Water in the river will remember your skin and will carry your voice. Leaves and pine needles will be whispering your name in a tongue no human can pronounce. Your face will be reflected in flames. Your shadow will forever stay with the moon it used to cast. The air will remember your breath which will be carried by the wind to all the places you wanted to visit. Your flesh or ashes will disperse around the Earth back into the stars from which you came.

 

[bamf]

I hope that people tell jokes and all the funny stories from my life. I want a wake, and I want an open bar at my wake. I want people laughing, and I want to still be able to bring people together even in death. I want the house to be filled with noise, commotion, laughter, and happiness. That's how I want to be remembered.

 

[JGirl]

my partner wants to be cremated without ceremony (although his brother will have none of that if he's still around. what a drama queen) and his only request is that the Led Zeppelin song The Rain Song is played.

 

[Quiet]

I would rather people say those things to me while I am alive rather than dead. If I am dead it's not like it matters to anyone except who I left behind. I think when I am approaching my death I will have a living wake. More people should do that. After all my funeral is for me, right?

I think this is an awesome concept. Living wakes! Funerals and death needs to revolutioned. So much better to say what you want and mean now rather than waiting for someone to die. Why mourn death when we can celebrate life?

In many ways i really dislike the western concepts and attitudes towards death. Many people see it as so morbid. I like how in many culture, eg. Indian, Egyptian and Latin American, its normal for people to start accpeting they are going to die when they start getting into their twilight years. People may go on personal journeys and try to make peace with everyone, possibly resolving their long held issues with families and friends. I love the idea of an early inheritance too, so one can watch their children and friends enjoy their legacy.

And i like how many cultures have a 'festival of the dead' type celebration. A day to remember and celebrate the people we have lost.