Well, That's Morbid

Maybe it happens to everyone at some point. Maybe not. All I know is, today it happened to me. As I do every morning, I scanned the obits. It's a little morbid, I agree. But I just can't help myself. I'm drawn to these tidy paragraphs capturing the highlights of a particular life. I scan up and down the columns and read about accomplishments and loved ones left behind. I look for a name I might know, because God forbid I forget to send a condolence card. Well, today I saw a name I know very well. My name. There it was, maiden name excluded. Carol Schneider had left the building. Immediately, I checked my pulse. I still had one, so that's good. I thought of Mark Twain and the famous quote that has many variations, but boils down to this: "The report of my death is greatly exaggerated." I recovered my equilibrium and read the obit of a different Carol Schneider, a gal born in 1927. Looks like she enjoyed a nice long life. May her memory be a blessing. And may seeing my name in this morning's obits remind me, once again, that much like my height, life is short.