A Grief Observed: Part II

This is one of the most interesting passages I have ever read. Lewis almost seems to forget he is writing a book and goes off on a thoughtful tangent to say the least, but he makes some good statements in hear that I think we should all take a look at.

Lewis makes the remark that we can not get it into our heads that our loved one is dead. In my experience he is right, we try to ignore the death like it never happened because it is just to painful to deal with, or like the old man we will do something to make us feel like we are still taking care of them. For the old man it was keeping up with the flowers on mums grave, for me it was fulfilling what my grandfather told me, he once said to me don't let anyone ever tell you that you can't. Before I would let people walk all over me, they would put me down as a child and tell me that I couldn't do anything, Adults have downgraded me because of my social class and my future dreams, but because of my grandfather and a bit of faith I can do what ever God wants me to do no matter who of what comes against me, in my own way thats how I keep my grandfather alive. Some of us may keep their clothes hung up and their shoes laying out, and then some of us will read the Bible out next to their grave. Like I said before death a hard hit, and we never want to let that person go, so in our own ways we don't. Lewis talks about how this isn't dealing with it but for some they feel like they are even though they are not.

Lewis makes a point on page 27. he talks about how people say that she is at peace now. then he said well what makes you so sure. it caught me off guard but he makes an interesting statement. He says how she was in gods hands this whole time, and if God is consistent then why would it be any different when we are not in the body then we we are in the body? All I have to say is somethings we are not meant to know. Listen to a song by Micheal W. Smith called Angels Unaware.

A Grief Observed

Wow, how many times have we been in that boat? Someone important in your life moves on to a better place. Don't you hate that phrase? We know that they go one to a better place but that does not change the fact that we will miss them, and what if they weren't a believer? I know, we don't talk about that but it is a apart of life. If they aren't a believer then they suffer in Hell for all of eternity.

Death is not a pretty planned out event and I would say that C.S. Lewis demonstrates this very well. In many parts of the passage I can relate to him and in many respects I can not. A few years ago both of my grandfathers died within a very short time of each other. Na truly This was very hard for me to deal with. Like C.S. Lewis I found it difficult to talk about, but unlike Lewis I wanted to talk to people about it, I just couldn't find the strength to. I found this passage very compassionate for he is telling his deep dark secrets and for that all of us can benefit. If I had read this before the passing of my grandfathers talking about it would have been a bit easier.

No matter how much one talks about death it will always be somewhat mysterious, heart rendering, sickening, and one of the last things anyone wants to think about, but it is the first thing our body does once we are born, it starts to die.

C.S. Lewis couldn't have shared how he felt any better than how he did in this passage and I think I will take something from this, that yes death isn't easy and it is not fun but it is something that we all eventually have to deal with, so why not start dealing with it now. One item that sticks out to me in my head is the eternal part of death. If you want to see your loved ones again get them saved, because if they don't then once they die you may never see them again. In my book thats the best way of dealing with it. yes you may miss them, but I'd rather miss them temporarily than eternally.

Happy Endings

Wow, where should I start? I guess the beginning. While reading passage A I got bored, possible because we all expect how a happy ending is going to be, but after I read B I started to get interested. There was a few times where I busted out loud with laughter because I was not expecting to read what I read. It was shocking, funny, embarrassing and all around horrible and great all at the same time. Isn't that just like humans. We find other peoples horrible endings funny and there happy endings boring. I will be honest hear, I laughed when Marry Over dosed and her man never came around. i must say that we tend to enjoy sad endings better just look at Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Beowolf, all of these have two things in common. They are great works that many enjoy time and time again and all of them have sad endings to them.

Personally I did not enjoy all of C, but when John shoots the two and himself I start chuckling because he dose it out of Jealousy, come on your ancient you had your chance John, and so did your hair, lol.

D was alright but quite boring, It did not capture any of the previous elements that caught my attention.

I really didn't care for E either, I could see that ending coming from a mile away.

F was much better it showed how no matter how you start the story you may end it any way you want to.

Love

Wow, I personally never thought about love as deep as these people did. It was almost sufficating at points. It seemed like Nick and his wife had everything figured out, didn't it make you sick. It also seemed like Mel and and Terry couldn't settle on anything really. Mell just wanted to kill his ex and Terry didn't know what he believed.

The story made me reflect on my own life and how I personally veiw love. Love to me is somthing that is enduring, somthing that is always fresh and new, and somthing that can not be bought traded or given up without a fight. reading this passage has helped me figure out love in my own life but it has also raised questions. For instance.

Lets say you meet someone and you truly love him or her but they end up dying. Then you find somoene new, was that old love really not love or where you destined to love two. Or is this new love really now your one and only, but then again where you to have two onlys?

My Earliest Literary Memories

when I was a child, one of the best things that I could remember was when mom would come into my room at night and read to me from my book of giant tales. That was one of my earliest encounters with Literature. I found the book itself almost addicting, no matter what happened I could always drift off into a world of giants, legends and make believe. Hear things ended the way they where suppose to, happy. As I and or my mother would read to me these tales my mind would wonder off and I prayed to God that it would never come back, because I would rather live in my imagination than have to be or do anything else.

Another set of literature that I came to love a few years later was Hank the Cow-dog. Things where always an adventure with hank, I would refuse to put the book down because i had to know what was going to happened next. Hank the Cow-dog was funny, adventurous, and thrilling all at the same time no wonder an 8 year old loved it so much.

As I progressed into the age 10/12 I became very interested in William Shakesphere. Mostly because of the way he thought. I would take every line of his works and I would dissect them, wondering the reason behind each gesture, personality and emotion. I loved reading something that forced myself to imagine myself in a situation where either outcome had a serious penalty.

Now I only get to read my school material. I do not have much time to do much of anything else but if i did I would also read Edgar Allen Poe. Story's that he tells such as the pendelum cause my mind to wonder what would I ever do if I where caught in a situation such as that. Literature to me has always been about reading to gain new patterns of thought and reason, to question your own thinking and to test your own theories and beliefs. Like I do now when I have time I will continue reading mind strangling works, theories and philosophies because Literature for me is no longer entertainment but a time to grow in ones thought.