My Own Goodbye – Your Own Good Death

"I light a candle. I sit quietly with my candle and my thoughts. I start by remembering the first time I met the person. I end by remembering our last visit. I say thank you. I blow the candle out. Once the candle goes out I breathe deeply. I am always grateful and amazed that such a simple muscle movement is what keeps me alive. Grateful and amazed that I can breathe when someone I knew, and loved, no longer does. Then [the] last step of my goodbye begins. I let my diaphragm contract, I let my lungs fill with air, and as I exhale I start to speak. I tell myself the story of my time with that person. It is a story I will use my breath to tell over and over.Because saying goodbye never means forgetting. Because their story is a part of me. Because I have the breath to tell it. Because saying goodbye, my way of saying goodbye, will go on until my last breath. Even when I am done telling the story, I will never forget how my time with them has shaped me. And as long as I am breathing they will be a part of me."

My Own Goodbye – Your Own Good Death: