by greencrow0 » Sat Aug 27, 2005 6:01 pm
I attended a funeral of the son of a friend last week. It was an unusual funeral by any standard. The church was packed with overflow out in the foyer...a middleclass 50 year old church... it had no air conditioning. At noon on a hot day, it was as hot as a sauna...the three lonely fans high in the ceiling, inexplicably motionless.<br><br>Sun streamed through the stained glass windows contrasting with the sombre mood and shock of the congregation. Family sitting in the front row, heads bowed almost to their waists in grief.<br><br>The Deceased was a young man 27 years old. Strong, athletic and in perfect health, he had died suddenly under strange and unusual circumstances. But that was not the worst part of the shock. The tragic fact was...that anyone who knew this young man or, like myself, knew more OF him although I've known his family since he was a toddler and intermittently had seen him at social functions through the years....knew him more by reputation...which had spread far and wide. <br><br>G. was an exceptional individual by any standards. He had been a straight 'A' student all through school, university and post graduate work in two universities. He was a well rounded student, active in theatre and in his community. His particular calling however, was geography and he was an expert cartographer. His genius for map making had already made him foremost in his field all over North America...where he travelled giving lectures at universities throughout Canada and the United States.<br><br>A week before his untimely death, he had travelled from his home in Canada all the way accross the North American Contintent to begin Ph.d. studies in a prestigious well known American University. He had driven all his possessions in a U-Haul successfully across the continent and parked his car and U-Haul outside of his new apartment. According to the story, he then went in and slept the night. Witnesses report, he came out of his apartment the next morning and went into his U-Haul to begin unpacking it. A passerby heard a 'thud' and looked into the U-Haul to see G. lying dead on the floor.<br><br>He could not be revived. As one indication of his stellar academic education, the Dean of the Geography School broke the news to his parents by telephone and the University covered all costs associated with the travel of the parent to the city, stay in 4 star hotel and costs of the cremation and other funerary expenses. His organs were donated to five different individuals. The coroner reported to the parents that, despite an autopsy, he failed to find anything wrong with G. that could account for such an untimely death.<br><br>There were four eulogies at G's funeral. Two were given by two of his professors at the two local universities where he had completed his undergraduate and masters degrees. Both professors broke down during their tributes...each stressing what a loss this young man's death was, not only for his family and his community....but for his country, Canada.<br><br>You see, this young cartographer had, through his genius, devised a method of mapmaking that included demographics. The function of this specialized computerized cartography was to assist social planners in devising the best environment for children to grow up in. G. was a patriotic young man who loved Canada. He was planning for its future. He was thought by his mentors and peers to be one of the future leaders of our country. Now he is gone.<br><br>Gone in an instant, in the back of a U-Haul in the United States. When I heard the circumstances of his death, a shiver ran through me. I tried to stop the thoughts that came flooding into my brain....no, it couldn't be....<br><br>All I can say is that personally I would not set foot in the United States and I would advise others to think twice before doing so. <br><br>Regards, <br><br>GC<!--EZCODE EMOTICON START 0] --><img src=http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/alien.gif ALT="0]"><!--EZCODE EMOTICON END--> <br><br> <p></p><i></i>
