Yesterday I read a great post by Martha Goudey’s Blog “Taking Care of Mom” –Reflections on daily life with a 101-year-old woman. It addresses what one does with the “remains.”
I have to admit that in the two and a half years since my heart attack I think about my own mortality almost on a daily basis and what to do with my remains. I want to be cremated and have my ashes scattered on the Gulf Stream off of Fort Lauderdale. In my years as a boat captain I’ve made many trips up and down the east coast of the United States on boats and I can imagine that some small part of my ashes might take me on one last trip up that way and perhaps an atom or two might even make it all the way across the pond back to England where both sides of my family came from.
One thing I’ve done is to gather some music for the ceremony at sea. I definitely don’t want want “Amazing Grace” played. Yes, I love the song, but it is such a cliché it would make me vomit in the urn and I’d go over the side in a lump.
I’ve made a CD of the music I want played when they take me out to sea for the last time and it’s in the hands of a couple of people so perhaps it won’t get lost. One of the songs, and I can’t find a video of it, is done by Dave Hole, called “Lost At Sea.”
As the sun sinks down like a submarine
You will find me down on the coast.
I’ll be gazing out at the shining sea
That’s the time I miss you the most.
Every star that shines will one day die
Every journey comes to an end.
And there are some things we’ll never know
Though it helps us to pretend.
When I see your eyes
In the gloom around me
And if I’m asked where you are gone
I’ll say you are lost at sea.
One of the songs will be “I’ll Fly Away,”
Another is Tom Waits doing “Shiver me Timbers” which pretty well sums up my life.
And, then it’s time to do the big dump to this tune by the now-defunct New Orleans group the Subdudes. Forward to 58 seconds to start the song at the right place.
One More Good Adventure 