I attended a celebration of life service for a staff member whose
life ended far too soon. This individual was a person who had God and
faith in his daily life along with expecting nothing but goodness from those
that were around him. During his eulogy one of his close friends stated
that he had labeled himself a perpetual optimist and everyone in the church
smiled and nodded as they came to full agreement when this was stated without speaking
any words. I personally thought that because he was such a fighter and
lived a healthy lifestyle, that he was going to beat the illness that stopped
him from working several months ago. One of his passions was to get on
his long distance bicycle and pedal his way through many miles of terrain as he
took cycling adventures up and down the Pacific Coast. I can recall for
his last birthday that he bicycled from Orange County all the way to San Diego
and then took the train back home. When I first heard about this, I
thought to myself how that didn’t sound like your typical birthday ritual, yet
he enjoyed this so much that it was one of the gifts that he gave himself every
year. By the end of the service I realized that he had lived a full and
beautiful life that was filled with many wonderful adventures, as he celebrated
the beauty of nature around him through the many miles that he traveled on his
bicycle. As I drove home that afternoon, I thought to myself when my time
comes to leave this amazing earth I too want to have no regrets about anything
and I hope that I added value to the place I called home for a number of years.
It is always a somber experience to go through this periodically when
someone's life ends and our respect for them is demonstrated through honoring
them at a service, that brings family and friends together one last time to pay
tribute to that individual. I personally like the term a celebration of
life more so than funeral, as that is what it should ultimately be. The only
thing that is certain about living is that we are all going to the same place
in the end and I am always hopeful that the rejoining of our own loved ones
will be one of the ultimate joys that we can all look forward to. Until
then, we will continue to honor, pay tribute and celebrate the lives of those
that left an imprint in our lives, while we remain here. As for the
person that left us to bike his way to Heaven, Alan Sheldon, may your journey
home be magical along with uplifting as you were on this earth and thank you
for your dedicated service to our country.
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your
balance, you must keep moving.” -Albert Einstein
