As I looked at the listing of obituaries, I found it interesting how our whole life can be summed up in a paragraph. It's what we do in that paragraph that makes a difference.
Most will have families listed, some will tell about where someone worked or served, and all have the person's birth date and day of death. This made me wonder if I am make enough difference.
This past Friday, we celebrated the life of a great man my Uncle Bill. It was a nice service celebrating his service to the Jacksonville Fire Department. He was honored as a hero. Quite a fitting tribute to a man who helped train a lot of EMT's.
This was a part of his life I really didn't even pay attention to. He was my Uncle Bill. I am not sure I even realized he was a firefighter until one time I noticed a emergency radio device at their house. It was kind of strange to me since it let you know when there was an emergency call and which fire department was responding.
When we would come to visit Uncle Bill, Aunt Rachel, Becky and Karen, we were there as a family. My brother and I were impressed with the stairs, we lived in a one story so stairs were a novelty. Their home was also located on a canal where we could fish or take a canoe out. It was an adventure visiting and I loved every minute of it! My Uncle Bill and Dad are brothers, not only did they share a birthday seven years apart but they looked a lot alike. So to me Uncle Bill was just a different version of my dad.
After my husband and I were married, our oldest son was born on Uncle Bill and my dad's birthday. It's pretty awesome that three people shared the same birthday!
Sometimes Uncle Bill would even get to camp with us, he brought his oldest grandson along and we'd have a wonderful weekend. Uncle Bill even sold us his trailer for what he owed on it, so we could upgrade from the popup since our kids were getting older. This was such a wonderful gift for us since we couldn't afford a brand new trailer. He then he bought himself a motor home saying it would be better for him anyway.
We even got to surprise Uncle Bill with the help of his second wife Aunt Melba, for his 70th birthday with a sleepover. The three birthday guys didn't get to celebrate together often, so this was an awesome opportunity. In fact, just a couple years ago we had the three birthday guys together along with my nephew for a quadruple birthday celebration.
Uncle Bill was a wise man, a kind man, and a man who cared deeply for his family. He lived his life to the fullest and fought hard to beat the cancer. He ran the good race and made a difference. I, along with many others will miss him, but know one day we will meet again. I love you Uncle Bill!
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