The obituary read like a small novel. Two large columns filled with Ted’s life long accomplishments. A father of three, a member of the greatest generation, a successful businessman. When he served his country he received medals for good conduct and marksmanship before being honorably discharged.
When I saw Ted’s picture on the obituary page, it struck me. Here’s a handsome man who was taken away from us at too young an age. At an age when the world is still yours to explore, chapters are yet to be written and decades of life and well-being are yours for the taking. But not for Ted. Ted died on October 15th.
Ted was 82.
I cannot for the life of me figure out why, when an obituary is placed in the paper, the family can’t come up with a recent photo of the deceased. Ted was 82 however, the accompanying photograph showed Ted about 60 years younger. I passed around the obit and asked several people in the office, how old they thought this man was, none of them got it right. A few said, “Why do people do that with photos?”
Chances are that nobody would recognize the Ted of yesterday when reading his obituary today. Was there not one single picture taken of Ted over the last 50 years? Sure, he may have looked great “back then,” but he died looking like he looked in 2009, not 1947.
I just don’t get it.
