I wanted to have this 49 year old picture displayed partly to divert your attention away from me and on to someone much more interesting.  It also I feel perfectly depictsCarmen in her natural element – I don’t think she enjoyed anything more than socializing with her kids, grandkids and great grandkids.  In fact, she was always a kid at heart until the day she died.  She would humble herself and get down to the same level and do the same things as the kids she was with.  Notice the unmistakable look of love and adoration for this little impish rugrat while beaming out the most brilliant smile and face that shone like a million suns.  This is exactly the way I prefer to remember my grandma Carmen.

I don’t take any pleasure in public speaking, but I could not turn down such a great honor.  I honestly feel a little guilty for accepting this honor and also a bit unworthy.  There is no way to convey the immense impact of the 96 years of life that Carmen gave to the world in less than the 5 minutes time I’m allotted, but I can give a few highlights.  Each one of us could easily give hours of memories and stories about the huge impact she had in our lives.

A few years ago a friend posted on Facebook a rhetorical question of why do we usually not speak honestly about the deceased at their funerals, but only present them in the most positive light possible?  The common etiquette is to “Never speak ill of the dead” to quote a phrase first given in the 3rd century.  The common reasoning goes, since dead people can no longer hurt us, or defend themselves, it is better to forget their bad actions and remember only their good ones.

On the way to a funeral several years ago I seriously wondered how difficult it would be to give the eulogy for that particular person who was not very likable.  The pastor did a great job given the circumstances, but afterwards the thought came to me – if I ever had to give a eulogy, who would be the easiest person to give it for?  Yeah, you guessed it.  The person I immediately thought of was Carmen.  

The reason why I thought that is because I don’t have to lie, cover up any skeletons in the closet, or keep secret a hidden, dark double life. The only “negative” personality traits I could come up with for Carmen is that she could at times be “too nice” and “too trusting” and allowed people to sometimes take advantage of her. But then again those aren’t necessarily negative traits to have at all are they if applied with discernment to people who are deserving, right?  

In reality, writing her eulogy was harder than I imagined it would be for different reasons altogether.  First of all, as the old saying goes” with great privilege also comes great responsibility” – I really don’t want to mess this up!  Secondly, because so many awesome things can be said about her I had throw out some content to keep this short which was not easy to do.

Carmen’s greatness can be partially explained by the fact that she was one of the last from the era known as “The Greatest Generation” which was a title given by Tom Brokaw in 1989 to those who were born between 1901 to 1927 – that I feel is very appropriate for those who lived during that timeframe - they who lived through the great depression, WWII, and ushered in a new era of American power and wealth.  They were defined by their work ethic, sacrifice for God and country, and frugality in the sense that they were thankful for what they had and didn’t live their lives trying to accumulate possessions, but family and friendships were more important.  They were a generation that still held their belief in God at the core of their being and expressed that belief in all aspects of their lives.  

Even though she came from such a noble, honorable, and heroic generation, even still she was one of their greatest examples.  Living in a hedonistic age today where the most important qualities are fame, fortune, and power, Carmen had none of those and didn’t have any desire for them either. Her greatest desire was for those she cared for to be happy and successful in life without any thought of herself.

There are some verses from the Bible which I feel perfectly exemplify and typify Carmen’s character:

Ephesians 5:1-2  Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Philippians 2:3-4  Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.  

In closing, I want to thank you Carmen for a life well lived and the example you set for all of us to emulate.  May all of us keep your memory alive by continuing to share with one another how important you were to us through our memories of you.