Thank You, Mark
Your life was a gift and a blessing
August 13 was a sad day for me, my wife, and the dive club I belong to. A friend, father, brother, and fellow diver was lost to COVID-19.
Although Mark was not a close friend of mine, I knew enough about him to know that he was a wonderful father and that he was I’m sure a wonderful teacher to the high school students he taught.
I went scuba diving with Mark many times over the past several years and will miss his presence in my life.
When we lose someone it’s always a reminder of how fragile life is. I’m sure that nobody in Mark’s family including Mark could have imagined four weeks ago that he would be gone now. It’s a powerful reminder of why I need to be grateful for every moment of life.
When I went to bed last night, I held my wife a little tighter before I went to sleep. When I woke up this morning, I felt a wave of gratitude come over me as I realized that I had another day of life and that I woke up next to the one I love. I never take that for granted, but today was extra sweet.
There is something powerful about processing the passing of someone close because it offers us the opportunity to process our own lives. We get to look back and see how amazing it is that we have survived to this day.
A friend reminded me of an exercise he did recently called the One Year to Live Fantasy. It’s powerful! The concept is to imagine what we would do if we knew we had one year left to live. How would our lives change? Would we do anything differently? Would we go on any new adventures we were not willing to go on before? Would we make amends to those we have tried to avoid? Would we finish that project that we didn’t think we could?
Death is the ultimate reminder that this life has an expiration date.
Death is also a reminder that life never really ends. The death of my friend Mark’s body is not the death of Mark. Mark will live on in the life of his children and in the hearts of those who knew him. And, in the spiritual realm, Mark now gets to experience his next adventure.
So really death is not the end of life, because death in the spiritual sense doesn’t exist. Yes, our physical bodies will die, but our souls never will. This is extremely comforting. I can even imagine Mark watching me write this and be smiling in agreement. I don’t know where Mark is right now, but I do believe that his presence is still around.
These concepts have come to me through years of learning from people who have helped me have a closer connection to a loving God. It hasn’t come without its challenges. For many years I believed in an angry and fearful God that expected perfection from me. That has changed. I now have a much kinder and gentler friend in my Creator who can help me through life.
Mark’s passing reminds me that every day is a gift to be cherished. I pray that in the tough times ahead for his family that they too can feel his spirit. I have heard it said that the death of a loved one makes their presence even more powerful in their lives because the departed person now lives in the surviving person’s heart. That’s wonderful to imagine.
Thank you, Mark, for your life. Thank you for bringing your son David into the world. Thank you for helping to make our dive club a safer club. Thank you for your smiles. Thank you for teaching your wonderful students for all those years. Thank you for setting the example of a loving and caring father.
I will never forget you.
I believe your spirit will go on forever. I trust that you are on your next adventure blessing the hearts of those you are in contact with right now.
Keep going, Mark. I see you continuing to do great things!
Essay by John C. Davis © 2021 All Rights Reserved