JAMIE SKEETERS--TO THE MAN I NEVER MET

Between this blog and my other blog, Michelle Says So, I am always reading, posting and concentrating on negative and terrible things that happen to other people. I've seen it all...I've read it all. Everyday I read about everything from murder to rape to missing people and grieving families... Death and horrific events that happen to "other people" has certainly put things in perspective for me. Especially when someone like Jamie, who could be my dad's age dies so suddenly and unexpectedly. Just remember...we could be one of them at any time.

Just like Jamie. Just like Natalee.
Suddenly and unexpectedly.

This was posted by someone who attended Jamie Skeeter's funeral:

Yesterday, I attended the funeral of a man that I had never met before. I went in honor of a friend and former co-worker of mine, who's father suddenly passed away. I had heard a few stories about him and I always noticed the twinkle my friend's eye whenever she spoke of him. I knew my friend would be devastated by her father's sudden passing, so my husband and I drove 2 hours in the pouring rain, to show our support and try to offer her some comfort.

During the funeral, numerous mourners stood up and talked about the man I had never met before. They spoke, one after another, about his generous nature, caring heart and sense of humor. For nearly 2 hours his friends and family sang his praise and reminisced about his incredible zest for life.


After only a few minutes, I found myself laughing, crying and grieving right alongside his closest friends and family. Throughout the service, I learned about the hundreds of lives he touched and his frequent altruistic acts while serving nearly 30 years of service to the Oxnard, California community. This once Marine Sergeant was also a police officer, a founding member of the Oxnard Police Department SWAT team, a member of the Ventura County Narcotics Task force, a founding member on the Governor's Task Force against Sex Offenders and he later became a licensed polygraph examiner. This guy was busy. But never too busy to help a friend in need or call his daughter a couple of times a day, just to say, "I love you."


By the time the service was over, I too, was grieving for the man that I had never met before.


And while he managed to touch so many lives while he was alive, even in his passing, he somehow touched a few more. I know my husband and I walked away from the service, inspired to become better people.


I think a good exercise in improving yourself... would be to simply think about what you would want your loved ones to say about you, at your funeral.

Dedicated to: Jamie Skeeters, the man I never met before: Thank you for making me want to be a better person.

http://tinyurl.com/ytm5kr