Contemplating the great unknown

Last Wednesday, I attended the funeral service of my uncle, who passed away only a few days before after succumbing to cancer. Ok, for those you might be sticklers for technicalities, he is technically my 1st Cousin once removed (see this Wikipedia article for an explanation), but as families go his family was very close to my mother's from her earliest memories, and my brothers and I have always considered him to be an uncle. I was quite sad to hear he had an inoperable condition, and saddened even more to hear how quickly the cancer moved in to rob him of is vitality. I was glad to hear that my uncle had put up a good fight, and with the greatest of care, love and support from those closest to him, he managed to live much longer than doctors would have given him credit for.

While I am saddened at the thought of the pain his wife and children will be feeling as a result of his passing, I cannot help but feel glad for him that there is now an end to his pain, and that after living the life of good and decent human being, that he had a chance to make his goodbyes and to pass on to whatever may come next.