My posts have been a bit wordy and chewy of late, so here for a quick and breezy go-through are a few deathly snippets clipped from a fascinating little book called "Get Dead," by Jamie Oliver. (Not I presume, the celebrity chef?)
"Once you know about death you can never not know about it again."
"Families (of the dying) are often caught up with the symptoms and they forget about their relationship."
Christine Klaus, clinical psychologist
"Death has been mystified by middle-aged men in suits. But death is the most natural thing in the world."
Lucy Howard, who was then a trainee embalmer
"People die of everything. I've seen fit and healthy people that have dropped down dead for no reason, and drinkers and smokers who live to a good age. I'll go my own way, thanks very much."
"I don't dislike anything about this job. I wonder if I'm sick in the head. They've tried to put me into counselling, but I don't need it. Well, I don't think I do!"
John Shiels, senior mortician
"I've always wanted to do this job, from about the age of eight. I loved wearing black and sitting around in cemeteries. They're so peaceful."
"There's a lot of myths around dying. I think this job has taken away the fear. I don't think there's life after death."
Sue Harvey, funeral director
"People say Buddhist funerals are happy occasions. But that's like saying going through labour doesn't hurt. It's bollocks."
Penny Black, Buddhist celebrant
Maybe more little bites from the frontier next time.
Very good! I love what Penny Black says. Ain't nothin' ever gonna take away the pain of the sting.
ReplyDeleteDid her parents christen her Penny Black, or has she chosen the name? you do wonder what parents are thinking of. Danny Boyle is another.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious about the people - like Sue Harvey - who seem to have an affinity with death from an early age. There are lots of them. Where does that come from I wonder?
We had an unpopular teacher at school whose initials, we found to our delight, were WCC-. So with the lightning wit for which nasty schoolboys are world-famous, we set to work...
ReplyDeleteGood question, Vale. Its almost like an extra enzme that enables them to digest ReaperNews sooner than the rest of us. Or a gene?
Something in there about acceptance. Are some people able to accept the Big Stuff (of all sorts) sooner in their lives than most of us? Are they, potentially or actually, more mindful? Could I catch this condition if one of them bit me? That'd be useful...