He grins at me and says. “ Well then Thomas, Tom, Tommy, Thomas. Dying, death, being dead, having died is a subject that lots of adults in our society don’t like to talk about. In fact they dislike talking about death, dying, being dead and having died so much( They all mean the same thing, just the timing is a little different between them) that they create and use words and phrases that relate to dying rather than actually say ‘Uncle Roger died.’ So I expect you will be confused in some of the conversations that you will hear and be part of over the next few days. Well”
My Dad pauses and puts his left arm on my shoulder and gives my shoulder a squeeze. I notice that a single solitary tear runs down his left cheek I do not move when my Dad …show more content…
“ When a person, or anything really that is alive...( I have my hand raised at this point and he laughs)... I know that you are going to ask what ‘alive’ is. Let me explain ‘dying’ and I think ‘living’ will make more sense. Living and dying are considered by a lot of people, myself included, to be opposites. A living thing is not dead and a dead thing is not living. …show more content…
I think that it is a beautiful flower. The white petals glow in the afternoon sunshine in a way that reminds me of clouds. After a count of 167 seconds my Dad appears in the garden, he stands with his back to me and waves both arms above his shoulders near his head so that I can see them pass his face. As I watch him do whatever he is doing he turns round 180 degrees holding the white rose that is now free from the bush.
My Dad walks away from the window and I hear him enter the house again. I hear the front door unlock and his feet stamp, the door is closed.
My Dad returns to the living room and comes to stand next to me on my left-hand side. “ Tommy, I want you to place this rose on your bedside table and watch what happens over the next fews, a check on the flower every morning when you rise from bed and once more before you go to sleep in the evening is sufficient for this purpose. The living white rose will already be starting to die now that it has been cut from the bush. Watch what happens to the petals, the stem and the leaves. Tommy”
He offers me the clipped white rose and I take it from him. He looks at me for seventeen seconds then says. “ Go and put the rose on your bedside table. I will answer any questions that you have about dying and death, I do think watching how the rose changes as it dies and withers will help you understand what happens when something dies.
My Dad pauses and puts his left arm on my shoulder and gives my shoulder a squeeze. I notice that a single solitary tear runs down his left cheek I do not move when my Dad …show more content…
“ When a person, or anything really that is alive...( I have my hand raised at this point and he laughs)... I know that you are going to ask what ‘alive’ is. Let me explain ‘dying’ and I think ‘living’ will make more sense. Living and dying are considered by a lot of people, myself included, to be opposites. A living thing is not dead and a dead thing is not living. …show more content…
I think that it is a beautiful flower. The white petals glow in the afternoon sunshine in a way that reminds me of clouds. After a count of 167 seconds my Dad appears in the garden, he stands with his back to me and waves both arms above his shoulders near his head so that I can see them pass his face. As I watch him do whatever he is doing he turns round 180 degrees holding the white rose that is now free from the bush.
My Dad walks away from the window and I hear him enter the house again. I hear the front door unlock and his feet stamp, the door is closed.
My Dad returns to the living room and comes to stand next to me on my left-hand side. “ Tommy, I want you to place this rose on your bedside table and watch what happens over the next fews, a check on the flower every morning when you rise from bed and once more before you go to sleep in the evening is sufficient for this purpose. The living white rose will already be starting to die now that it has been cut from the bush. Watch what happens to the petals, the stem and the leaves. Tommy”
He offers me the clipped white rose and I take it from him. He looks at me for seventeen seconds then says. “ Go and put the rose on your bedside table. I will answer any questions that you have about dying and death, I do think watching how the rose changes as it dies and withers will help you understand what happens when something dies.