The top news headline today reads as some variant of this: Tim Russert dead at 58.
A few weeks ago, an obituary ran in a newspaper in IL. A long-time resident of that community had passed, after 100 years of life.
The first was a famous name of a television reporter who I occasionally watched on Sundays. The second is my father's godmother. It would seem comparing the testimonials of Russert's colleagues to the reflections of my own great-aunt would have nothing in common, and yet they remarkably do.
It appears Mr. Russert was a man of great faith who invested himself in people, regardless of their status. Listening to Bob Woodward and David Gregory said just as much, and personally I couldn't help but think he was a good guy after his insightful yet generous appearances on Jim Cramer's Mad Money. And reports have it that his family had just been in audience with Il Papa, which makes this Catholic smile.
My aunt lived her life without the public spotlight, but yet still gave herself in service to all. Her work as a trust officer secured a number of families with a stable financial foundation, many of whom returned her generosity upon their own deaths. She always enjoyed visitors to her house, and treasured that time with them. Her faith (also Catholic) was her foundation, the wellspring from which her generosity flowed.
I write this because as a society, we treat death almost exclusively as the sadness of losing something good and with the idea that the deceased has moved on to a better place. But to someone whose persona demands that things have a purpose, it seems that another question needs to be raised with equal reverence: What did he or she teach us? What good from his or her life should be incorporated into my life that hasn't been already? I'm not sure there's a universal answer to these questions, because these are the types of questions with answers that speak to a personal level.
For this purpose-obsessed mind, the lesson from both of these is clear: Too often do I associate purpose with tangible pursuits, rather than in developing relationships with people. Maybe it's that rugged individualism that is ingrained in American lore, but I find myself looking to help my pursuits almost as much as I should be trying to help others'. Yet my head knows that it is in genuinely helping others that we most help ourselves. As Jesus was quoted: "The first is this: 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." (Mk 12: 29-31; author's emphasis)
That's how Tim Russert lived. That's how my great aunt lived. That how we all need to live.
12 years ago
