In November of this year a friend, fellow rider and BMW enthusiast name Jerry Cook passed away suddenly leaving behind a large circle of friends and family. In his memory I have written this tribute to him to attempt to capture one of the many aspects of this man that made him a most unique individual.
Dignity
In memory of Jerry Cook
November 23, 2004
It was a gray and somber morning
as I rode in to work today.
I could have just as easily gone by car
but the weather seemed somehow fitting
as I thought about the passing of a fellow rider.
A fellow rider no longer among us.
Who, having taken his final ride,
is no longer around to share the journey,
his knowledge and love
with those he touched in life.
I thought about him and his life as I traveled
down those many thought-roads in my mind
and soon found myself contemplating
the progression of life, the finality of death,
and the impressions each individual leaves
within those of us left behind.
As I wandered the back roads of my mind,
a phrase we often hear in reference
to someone recently departed began to surface.
As the thought coalesced in my mind I stopped to consider
what it truly meant and how one arrived
at such a conclusion.
The phrase that came to mind was simply
"They Died With Dignity".
As I considered it I had to wonder if perhaps we
are really referring to something entirely different?
Consider for a moment if it is possible
for a person to die with dignity
if they failed to first embrace it in Life?
Can they truly appreciate and understand such a concept
without having lived a life of honor and forthrightness?
That in turn led me to ponder how can we ever
really know the manor of an individual’s death,
other than the physical aspects of their demise?
How can we know their final thoughts in those last moments,
as the essence of what they were leaves the physical
to transcend to some other plane of existence?
The more I thought about it, the clearer it became
and I found there was only one logical conclusion.
When we say someone "Died with Dignity"
What we are really saying is that they "Lived with Dignity"
(At least that’s what it means to me, you might well see it in a entirely different
Perspective, but I can’t hear your inner thoughts,
I can only know mine.)
So having reached the above conclusion
and knowing what I know of Jerry in Life
I can say with absolute certainty that
he did indeed "Die With Dignity"
And I can therefore think of no greater tribute to his memory.
God speed, my friend, God speed.
