your grief and the universe
You want a physicist to speak at your funeral. You want the physicist to talk to your grieving family about the conservation of energy, so they will understand that your energy has not died. You want the physicist to remind your sobbing mother about the first law of thermodynamics; that no energy gets created in the universe, and none is destroyed. You want your mother to know that all your energy, every vibration, every BTU of heat, every wave of every particle that was her beloved child remains with her in this world. You want the physicist to tell your weeping father that amid the energies of the cosmos, you gave as good as you got.
And at one point you’d hope that the physicist would step down from the pulpit and walk to your brokenhearted spouse there in the pew and tell him that all the photons that ever bounced off your face, all the particles whose paths were interrupted by your smile, by the touch of your hair, hundreds of trillions of particles, have raced off like children, their ways forever changed by you. And as your widow rocks in the arms of a loving family, may the physicist let her know that all the photons that bounced from you were gathered in the particle detectors that are her eyes, that those photons created within her constellations of electromagnetically charged neurons whose energy will go on forever.
And the physicist will remind the congregation of how much of all our energy is given off as heat. There may be a few fanning themselves with their programs as he says it. And he will tell them that the warmth that flowed through you in life is still here, still part of all that we are, even as we who mourn continue the heat of our own lives.
And you’ll want the physicist to explain to those who loved you that they need not have faith; indeed, they should not have faith. Let them know that they can measure, that scientists have measured precisely the conservation of energy and found it accurate, verifiable and consistent across space and time. You can hope your family will examine the evidence and satisfy themselves that the science is sound and that they’ll be comforted to know your energy’s still around. According to the law of the conservation of energy, not a bit of you is gone; you’re just less orderly. Amen.
– Aaron Freeman.
tagging @lueurspace (thought you'd be interested!)
@theriverissinging
Thank you so much for posting this! I found it really helpful, because that's kind of one of the ways I comfort myself about the deaths of those close to me too. <3
@resourcefulPond1641
So glad to know you found this helpful! And yeah, I agree, it is a very comforting idea. Sending you love. ❤️
@theriverissinging
Riverrr.. oh my gosh. I truly can't tell you how touched I am that you thought of me and shared this beautiful piece with me. I will be honest, I really have a very weird relationship with grief and I'm still learning so many things about how to process it. I am just at a place where I can't help but think about this theme and how it so deeply connects to me. I really have to mention, this post is brilliant and it found me at the right time. it also helped me have a good cry after having some pent up emotions. I am so beyond thankful to have received this tag from you, I more than love this! I adore this ❤️ thank you so much for tagging me and for sharing this with the entire community, River. you truly don't know how much of an impact this had on me at this very moment. you're so amazing and please know, receiving a tag from you brightens up my day!
tagging @Sunisshiningandsoareyou @SparkyGizmo @Silverwillows8128 @Max741 I don't know why but you guys were on my mind and I wanted to share this moment that I had ❤️ I hope you're all doing well!
@lueurspace
❤️❤️❤️
@lueurspace
Thank you so much for keeping me in your mind. I truly appreciate it 🙏
@lueurspace
Lueur, T_T I don't know why but you were on my mind while making this post too, hence the tag lol.
I can relate to having a weird relationship with grief and processing it. The highlight of my day? It helped so many of you relate and find comfort.
We all adore you more than you adore this excerpt.
Thank you for writing this, truly. ❤️
@theriverissinging
❤️❤️❤️
@SparkyGizmo
Thank you so much for reading, giz. ❤️
As you've put in your bio - "Ideologies separate us. Dreams and anguish bring us together." - Eugene Ionesco
@theriverissinging
River, I have to say, I loved reading every word of your forum post! ❤️ It affected me, and deeply. I think what happened is that it was so well thought out, so well said and beautifully written that it rendered me speechless! 😊 For me, I had a visceral reaction to it. It made me tear up and it gave me chills, not in a bad way, in a beautiful way! I have read it now again today! Once again, same reaction, my world stopped spinning, I even propped my world up on a kick stand and just let it sit. Same "welling up" and same chills!
I simply replied with the ❤️❤️❤️ to let you know that I read it and I was so incredibly moved as a human being. No way to improve upon perfection my friend. That was sheer brilliance, so heart felt and truly rocked my little world! I'm glad that you too liked that quote from my profile page. I believe as you believe! That sure is one powerful quote, now isn't it? I stand strong with putting that quote on my profile page, I have integrity! Some times I even go back and read my own profile page. For me, I "check myself". I said it and I meant it, every word I put there. Can I still hold strong to the commitments that I made to myself and to everyone else by writing what I did? So far, so good! weeeeeeeee weeeeeeeee!
For me, no one ever deposited the truth scrolls with me. For me, I am come one and come all. I see so much value in all belief systems and I am someone that is so very open to everyone's thought processes and beliefs. My understanding is that the worlds most predominant religions, simply boil down to one simple tenant "love one another". *high fives* Even having no faith at all is still having a faith! lol, how you like that one?
Long ago, I went on my own little spiritual journey. I was born into a certain religion and many simply accept that. That's fine too. I wanted to come to my own conclusions. If I came back to the very same point, that would be fine also. But I wanted to think and I wanted to feel and I wanted to make choices for myself. I too am someone that believes in science. Matter is neither created nor is it destroyed. So hard to come to terms for some in how to make science, religion, and spirituality all have a strong intersect. Guess what? I did it! I would simply consider myself at this point to be someone that is spiritual and not religious as there is a very big difference.
Religion is man made and some of the worlds religions were created for ill gotten gain. It's just part of my education, my personal journey, sitting at the knee of others, to learn, embrace and read ancient texts of so many religions. I've taken the tour my friend! I pick and choose. I embrace what feels right to me and I am someone that has pulled from many areas to develop my very own personal belief system.
River, if it were my funeral, I would want a physicist to speak to my loved ones. If it were a funeral for one of my loved ones, I would want a physicist to say all of those things to me as well. big *hugs*❤️ *bows in front of greatness* Thank you for giving me this beautiful moment in reading your forum post
@SparkyGizmo
Hey giz, I know right! It has the same magic everytime you read it! That is definitely a powerful and relatable quote in your bio. I get what you mean when you say you "check yourself", I do that too! It's good to see where one stands from time to time, so thank you for doing that!
I like how you speak about belief systems, it's interesting. I like coming to my own conclusions too and don't see much interest in just accepting things as they are passed on to me. I would rather delve deeper into it critically. Definitely hard to find a "common ground" when it comes to science, religion and spirituality and ever more hard to come to terms with it once you are aware of your "own truths and reality", if you get what I mean? Take what you need / find right and leave the rest of it.
It's such a comforting excerpt to have come across! I'm glad you found this deeply moving as well.
Thank you so much for your reply! *hugs back* ❤️
I just feel like sharing some paragraphs from Our Chemical Hearts by Krystal Sutherland. (Censoring some words as I don't want this to be taken down lol.)
@theriverissinging
Hi River! 😊❤️ Thank you for that my friend. I enjoyed reading that one as well! 😊 Clearly, yes, you are someone that understands the concept of critical thinking and you also strike me as someone that is incredibly cerebral! It seems to me you have reached a level of higher order thinking and I must say, it's not everyone that is able to get to that point! I see it as quite rare in society. big *hugs* ❤️
@SparkyGizmo
Aw giz, thank you haha! I'm glad you liked reading those too! ❤️
@theriverissinging
This is so well written. I am in awe of your writing skills!
@Silverwillows8128
I haven't written it, but I agree it's so beautiful!
This is a transcript of a speech given by writer and performer Aaron Freeman on NPR News "All Things Considered". You can listen to it here.
Thank you so much for reading! ❤️
Aw thankyou for thinking of me when you read it first, @lueurspace ! I can see how it touched you so much, it is indeed such a heart warming set of words , very comforting . Hope you're doing super well luuu ❤ *huggles*
I've come across this before and I am so glad i could come across this again, thankyou for sharing the excerpt with us , River ! It is truly so beautiful , powerful and just comforting to know . ❤ @theriverissinging
It's said that when someone leaves the world ,their essence is still around, we can almost always *feel* our loved ones around us , makes even more sense now 🤗
@Sunisshiningandsoareyou
Glad you could come across this again, sun! Agree with you, it is very powerful! ❤️
Hey @theriverissinging , I recognized the speech from where it has been taken, and I can't thank you enough for sharing this piece here, I am glad I came across this post, every word seems to be so connecting it just put me in thoughts and vary of emotions reading this. Thank you so much. 💜
@unique73 so glad! ❤️ Lots of love to you. ❤️
@theriverissinging- thank you for this post. When my father-in-law passed I was sitting in his seat at the symphony with my eyes closed. Lets just say- I experienced a revelation that life is energy. Very comforting and as real as reaching out and touching the person sitting next to me.
@ScoreKing
Hey, thank you for reading the post! I love how you say life is energy. It is definitely very real. Sending you loads of love and comfort hugs if you consent. ❤️
@theriverissinging- I gratefully accept the hugs and comfort right now. Just had to put down another horse on Wednesday and was able to spend more time with his physical body. He was buried on Thursday and by then his energy had shifted. The subject of death, loss and grief intrigues me and often it is not enough discussed until we have experienced a loss. Your post about how we are all energy is a concept that stretches many peoples minds!!
@ScoreKing
❤️ I'm very sorry for your loss. Yes, it can be not discussed or understood much until one experiences it. I agree that it is an interesting concept!
(Just a tip that the person you're tagging receives the tag only in these cases
@username ✓
@username, ✓
@username. ✓
as far as I'm aware and not if you write it in any other way.)
Perfectly said when I needed to read something that would not only give me comfort but also bring me peace in knowing that even if I lost him in this life then I will still see him in the there after. I am still feeling so lonely without him but if he is at peace because I love him I don't want to hold him back. It's so hard trying to let go and nothing moves quiet the same as it did before I see reminders of him every where I go and my mind always reverts back to memories of him when he was happy and not when he was angry or hurt but I know that even in breakups and loss of a loved one I'd you hold on to them even their spirit has a harder time detaching and ascending. I really thank you for putting an educated and professional response
@faithfulPear3602 ❤️ I see your hurt, sending love your way.
I no longer feel like I have a place anywhere. The world has become a bad and bleak place.
@DinaElwy aw I feel you, and relate in a way. ❤️ Let us know if there's anything possible that we can do for you.
@theriverissinging I feel so awful. yesterday I was making a presentation, I organized my ideas and made notes to say through my presentation, and when I reached slide 3 the professor interrupted me and kept asking me a lot of questions that made me dizzy and then she asked my colleagues if they understood what I said and they answered no. I spent weeks to prepare for my presentation and the professor ruined it. For God's sake how could anyone understand anything when I read only three slides. All my colleagues had their opportunities to explain their pretension except me. I feel injustice and unfair. and now I have to get a laptop stronger than my computer to male a practical project and I have no money to pay for it.
@DinaElwy
Hi. I'm so sorry that happened. That can very much feel unfair. ☹️ You feel you could have explained better if the professor let you continue and didn't interrupt with a lot of questions, which is understandable. I also get the money part, that doesn't help. All of it can feel like a situation a bit out of control. I understand how this would make you upset and frustrated as I see it. ❤️ Feel free to keep me updated on how things are going. ~