The Interesting One

Our discussions in class about memory and memorialization got me thinking about the tragedy of someone not being represented or remembered in the way they would want to be, because of tradition. All we do throughout our lives is attempt to represent ourselves the way we want to be viewed, with our clothes, language, musical preferences, food preferences and other countless aspects of our lives. Then we pass on and this life we’ve made could be eradicated in one fell swoop. Perhaps your family didn’t have the guides we all made at the beginning of term of what you would want to be buried in and with, I’m sure most items would be seen as preposterous and so unconventional it would not matter anyway. We spend all this time creating ourselves, but in the end mostly everyone is buried or cremated in a traditional way. In class for example, we only study the anomalies. At first we look at the burial site as a whole, then we focus on the ones which broke the pattern and took us by surprise. Do we not all deserve to be the “interesting one”?

Although this ramble is rather somber, I really do think people should discuss what they want to happen to them after their death, in advance. When the only thing left of me are people’s memories, I want them to actually be of me-not an image other’s have painted for them-no matter what. I suppose that in a way, tradition alleviates pain and planning for people, and for a majority it is what they desire. But to truly commemorate someone, one must never forget all the crazy little things that made them a “me”.