Over the last few months I’ve re-connected with a number of people on Facebook. It’s like going to the highschool reunion without leaving home. People just can’t help it. The curiosity factor is too great.
The changes are remarkable. The guy with the most hair is now bald, the ugly chicks from school have gotten real hot, and the “hotties” have turned into “notties”. Basically, time has passed and if you no longer look in a mirror your aged friends on Facebook will make you.
Years ago I remember feeling the first twinges of age when the little kid down the block got his drivers license-I’d kill to be that young now! Now, here is the part most of you will find funny. I am thirty-six which is still young to many people though considered ancient by the teenage crowd.
The death of Comedian, Actor, and Chef Dom DeLuise actually prompted my latest foray into the realizations of age. Dom was quite a funny presence in my younger life making even the smallest roles in Mel Brooks’s movies hilarious. Nothing was better than his classic outtakes with Burt Reynolds in the Cannonball Run movies and the mere joy of the man. His eyes contained the light of the playful spirit who just wanted to make you laugh.
The fact that such a pleasant personality is now gone from this earth is a strong and important reminder that we are only here for a very short time. Dom was 75 and though his body is finished that funny soul within still brings us laughter when we most need it. I was very happy to hear the man didn’t suffer and died peacefully in his sleep-A death I would actually kill for-:)
A sad fact of life is that the longer we live the more we will see taken away from us. These losses hurt not only because the emotional connections or the absence of a strong or creative presence but because they are part of our overall story. Whether it’s a Father who taught you life lessons, grandparents that reminded you of a previous generation where values seemed clearer, an Acting teacher who taught you how to express or a comedian who gave you a much needed relief from everyday life with a funny joke or observation-All of these people plus the books you’ve read, movies you’ve watched, and things you’ve created will all end some day.
Freud said that we like to re-connect with our past. I not only believe that but feel we do it not just to remind us of who we are but who we were in times that are now memories. We’ve heard all the clichés about living life in the moment and to the fullest but do we? Think about it and somehow try to understand it. I look at Facebook and am truly amazed how many people I’ve connected with or have known over the years. Some of us will live to 75 or higher, some of us will not live much longer, and some of us will fly lower, and some of us will soar. We play the game but we don’t make the rules.
Where do we go when this is over, Dom? I know you know the answer now. I just hope it’s funny there and our stories can continue with everything we’ve lost, everything we’ve learned, and everyone we’ve loved. There’s nothing quite like a continuing saga……
Thumbnail of DeLouis’s Stationary by activitystory
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I had a heart attack July 26 last year.
All you say is REAL!!!
Peter
Thank You for sharing Peter and I was in the Emergency Room last year and spent a lot of time since reflecting on all this. As you know-When you get a warning sign you can’t help but to think of the truly important things.
It’s amazing how much time and circumstances change your perspective. I have only been out of school for ten years and it’s amazing to hear about and see where people have gone and what they are up to.
The fact that we have this insight and access into people’s lives only proves the theory in Tom Friedman’s book “The World is Flat”.