The Chimes

Issue date: 1/31/08 Section: Opinion

Everyone has moments that define their life. Events like moving to a new city, getting married or losing someone you love. It could be a moment of complete joy or perhaps of sadness and grief, but you measure your life as "before" and "after" this one split-second.
Exactly one year ago today, my uncle passed away. People in my life had died before: grandparents, neighbors, friends' parents. But my uncle was only in his 40s and healthy and we lost him very unexpectedly and tragically.
I was particularly close with my uncle. I only have one cousin close to my age: his daughter. We lived nearby growing up, and I spent nearly as much time at their house as I did at mine.
It's the silly little things about my uncle that I remember. He made the best barbecue chicken wings I have ever tasted. He sang Tom Jones songs very loudly in public all the time.
He gave everyone in the family nicknames based on "Flintstones" characters and he was the only one who remembered and used them. (I got stuck with Wilma).
His daughters somehow managed to blast Pink Floyd during his funeral in the most stern Catholic cathedral in Ohio.
I wanted to write this column partly to remember him, and partly to remind you about those defining moments.
It's been a long year without him and it's been a hard week for me and my family. I will miss him every day for the rest of my life. But I know how much he loved his family, and I remember all the beautiful things he taught me.
Heartbreak is inevitable in this life, but unbelieveably good things can also happen. What matters is that you take those defining moments, good or bad, and remember them, learn from them. One of the worst things to happen to you can completely change your life for the better if you let it.
cplungas@capital.edu

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