Tales of the Forgotten: Prelude

Family never forgets.

December 25th, 2014 4:07 P.M.

Jacksonville, NC

It was christmas day and yet all wasn’t as it should have been. The joy of being with family and reminiscing on days past this year were simply not there. Instead the feeling of joy and nostalgia was replaced with a sullen mood as one chair at the dinner table stood empty with an empty plate and glass to pair. The rest of the table was filled with foods from the traditional christmas turkey to our homemade green bean casserole. The house was decorated with the same christmas cheer that had always been a part of our family and yet that one glaring thing dulled everything out, it was the elephant in the room that made itself apparent to everyone present at this year's festivities. We had all attempted to not think about him but we just found it impossible because the fact was, it is our first year in the past 17 years without him here. 17 years of memories and 17 years of our lives and now he was gone.

I cleared my throat and stood up at the head of the table as everyone looked up at me. “Let me start out by saying thank you, for being here this christmas. Each and everyone of you,” I pointed to everyone in the room and stopped on Michael, his old best friend and his family. “ And you most of all. Today we shouldn’t be sad about the years and memories he left behind but that he was happy through it all. You know he wouldn’t want us to be thinking about him at this time of year, especially if it was bringing us all down into such a somber state. He’d tell us to stop moping and put a smile on our faces.”

“So here’s a toast, a toast to our friend, a toast to our loved one, and a toast to my little brother. My only brother, in the end despite what we had thought he would say. He didn’t blame any of us and he reminded us that we can get through this, if not alone than with each other. He loved each and everyone one of us here tonight, and nothing will ever change that fact. Not now and not in a million years. Remember what he left for us? He told us “Fac ut animae quietem in pace semper. Nolite flere super me, quia bene mihi erat cum. That roughly meant ‘May my soul rest in peace for ever. Do not weep for me, for I was happy.’ He wasn’t saying that just because he wanted us to be happy but that we could move on and not blame ourselves for what happened.”

“You may regret some of the things you said to him, I know I sure did but even at the end I can tell you, he had no resent towards any of you for it. Let it be a reminder that you should never regret not being able to help him but cherish the moments you were able to spend with him.” With that I held my glass in the air in a toast and the sullen mood that had plagued us had withered away to be replaced by a much happier one.