Death and Taxes

Years back, I started to make a list for a Day of the Dead ceremony. I realized that in order to honor the departed, I needed to remember exactly who I had known who passed on. I divided the list into categories—family, friends, neighbors, people from school, people from the Orff world and so on. I didn’t include public figures who I admired and who influenced me (R.I.P. Wayne Shorter) unless I had some personal contact with them.

 

One of the great sorrows of aging is the lengthening of that list of loss. (And one of the great gratitudes is that I am not yet on that list.) Just yesterday, I added four more people— a school alum parent, a sibling of a dear friend and two people from the Orff world. I’m sure I’ve missed some people, but as of now, there’s 185 people on the list and each time I add one, I read through it all and remember each of them. It’s always bittersweet to realize how much I miss some of them while also being grateful that I knew them. If you haven’t made such lists yourself, I highly recommend it. I know deep in my bones that the departed like being remembered, as I imagine we will be and it’s a simple way to honor their memory.

 

Then there’s the second of life’s sureties— taxes. They’re due soon and as always, I’m resisting digging up the numbers. It’s on my list today and every word I write here helps me procrastinate. But that doesn’t make it go away. When I pass over to the other world, there’s a few things I won’t miss— news about Republicans, visits to the dentist and… taxes. Wish me luck!

PS I heard a rumor that the April 15th date in California is extended until October and my tax accountant confirmed it's true! 7 months more to procrastinate! Now I wonder if I can ask for an extension for whatever date the Grim Reaper has marked.