eulogy for my grandfather
words are inadequate when it comes to paying homage to any person. here is my humble attempt...
With the brief amount of time I’ve got right now, it would be impossible to sum up the life of the man lying before us. Shunmugam was his name. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had more than “6 faces”. I though, am familiar with only a few of those facets. Technically speaking, he was my grandfather. But really, he was a lot MORE than just my grandfather. Thatha was also one of my best friends and a confidante, to whom I frequently poured out my troubles. Despite the vast difference in our ages and the generational gap, we never had trouble seeing eye to eye on many things. I think, this was due more to the fact that Thatha’s philosophy on life was way ahead of his time, rather than me being all that mature. The fact that he never talked down to me, but treated me as an equal also helped. Advice from him was sparse because he subscribed to the belief that no advice is better than bad advice. However, when he did give advice, it was generally sound and insightful and very much appreciated.
Almost anyone who has spoken to him would be aware of his prowess in the English language. This was something that he was especially proud of, and he always took the opportunity to share his huge vocabulary with the people he spoke with. For those who don’t know, he’d generally slip in a rather bombastic word into a sentence and later he would ask the other person if they knew what that word meant. It was usually not a good idea trying to bluff him and say you know the meaning of the word, because he was liable to go “OK good. So what does that word mean?” His excellent command of the language was selflessly used to aid others. He was responsible for drafting lots of official petitions that were generally successful. I don’t know how many people, those here today and elsewhere, have benefited from Thatha’s deeds, but I’m sure that the goodwill that he has amassed would see him well in the hereafter.
Being the rather unconventional and irreverent man that he was, he was always telling us “Do not cry when I’m gone. Be happy for me. I’ve gone to a better place.” Having observed the suffering and helplessness that this once-upon-a-time independent man had gone through, I do indeed believe that he has migrated to a better place.
I know that it may be hard to respect Thatha’s wishes in this aspect, but let us do our best to abide by them and shed no tears. Instead of mourning his passing, let us celebrate the fact that Thatha has lived life to its fullest. Let us be grateful that our lives have been blessed by being touched by this beautiful soul.
With the brief amount of time I’ve got right now, it would be impossible to sum up the life of the man lying before us. Shunmugam was his name. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had more than “6 faces”. I though, am familiar with only a few of those facets. Technically speaking, he was my grandfather. But really, he was a lot MORE than just my grandfather. Thatha was also one of my best friends and a confidante, to whom I frequently poured out my troubles. Despite the vast difference in our ages and the generational gap, we never had trouble seeing eye to eye on many things. I think, this was due more to the fact that Thatha’s philosophy on life was way ahead of his time, rather than me being all that mature. The fact that he never talked down to me, but treated me as an equal also helped. Advice from him was sparse because he subscribed to the belief that no advice is better than bad advice. However, when he did give advice, it was generally sound and insightful and very much appreciated.
Almost anyone who has spoken to him would be aware of his prowess in the English language. This was something that he was especially proud of, and he always took the opportunity to share his huge vocabulary with the people he spoke with. For those who don’t know, he’d generally slip in a rather bombastic word into a sentence and later he would ask the other person if they knew what that word meant. It was usually not a good idea trying to bluff him and say you know the meaning of the word, because he was liable to go “OK good. So what does that word mean?” His excellent command of the language was selflessly used to aid others. He was responsible for drafting lots of official petitions that were generally successful. I don’t know how many people, those here today and elsewhere, have benefited from Thatha’s deeds, but I’m sure that the goodwill that he has amassed would see him well in the hereafter.
Being the rather unconventional and irreverent man that he was, he was always telling us “Do not cry when I’m gone. Be happy for me. I’ve gone to a better place.” Having observed the suffering and helplessness that this once-upon-a-time independent man had gone through, I do indeed believe that he has migrated to a better place.
I know that it may be hard to respect Thatha’s wishes in this aspect, but let us do our best to abide by them and shed no tears. Instead of mourning his passing, let us celebrate the fact that Thatha has lived life to its fullest. Let us be grateful that our lives have been blessed by being touched by this beautiful soul.
