I was discouraged because I wanted to know why we as a culture wait until somebody has passed away before we tell them how much we love them.Why do we wait until someone`s ears can`t hear before we let them know how much they mean to us?Why do we wait until it is too late before we recall the good qualities of a person?Why do we build someone up after they have gone into eternity?What good does it do then?We share memory after memory,as we laugh,cry,and think back about what was positive in a person`s life.Yes,it does help us cope with the grief of losing someone who was special to us,and,yes,it does bring those who are coping closer together.Unfortunately,as we lovingly rememeber this person,our words fall short of the ears that most needed to hear them.

Just once I would like to see a celebration of life instead of a gathering of death.A celebration where stories are told,eyes mist over,laughter rings out,and as the speaker concludes his or her loving tribute,the person they are honoring rises from his chair and gives them the biggest bear hug!Wouldn`t that be something!The special people get to hear the stories and come to the realization that they have made a difference on this earth,and all this is done well before they leave their earthly bodies and go into etrnity.When the inevitable funerals finally come,we can say good-bye with the knowledge that they knew exactly how people felt about them while they were here on earth.

我很沮丧，因为我想知道为什么我们要等待那么久，直到别人去世了，才告诉他们，我们有多么爱他们?为什么我们要等到别人耳朵都听不到了才让他们知道他们对我们有多么重要?为什么我们要等到已经来不及的时候才回想起别人的优点?为什么要等别人死后才将他树为楷模?那时候再做又有什么用呢?我们分享一个又一个的记忆，我们一会儿笑一会儿哭地回忆着他一生中的重要时刻.是的，这的确帮助我们应对失去一个对我们很特殊的人的悲伤，也会让有同感的人更紧密.不幸的是，当我们生动地回忆这个人时，最需要听这话的人却听不到我们的话语了.

我只想看哪怕一次生命的庆典而不是死亡的聚会.在这个庆典中，人们讲着趣事，眼光交流，笑声四起，而当演讲者讲完他或她的爱的情意时，他们尊敬的人从椅子上站起来，紧紧地与其拥抱.这不是件天大的好事吗!那些对我们有特殊意义的人应该听到那些故事，然后意识到他们在世界上制造了不同，所有这一切都应该在他们离开他们尘世的肉体，去往永恒之前做好.这样当最终的葬礼到来的时候，当我们和他们说再见之即，同时明确地知道他们了解生前人民对他们的想法.