Stewart's ashes

My brother died three and a half years ago. That is hard to believe, but it's true. Stewart's body was donated to the University of Iowa Medical School at his request, and eventually his ashes were returned to the family. But then, there was no real consensus on what to do with them. Stewart himself had not left written instructions, though he had expressed some preferences at various times. So the issue has been discussed over time, and various options considered. Finally, consensus gathered around a plan to scatter some of his ashes into a flowing stream in a fen where he loved to walk, with the remainder to be interred in an adjoining cemetery, with a grave marker. So that happened Saturday morning. All the siblings and two grandsons were there, some with spouses, plus Maggie and Jerry, Ellen and myself, Chuck, a friend and neighbor of Stewart's, and some friends of Daniel's. It was a perfect day. The trail into the fen was lovely, and we found a little boardwalk over a flowing stream where we could all stand and take turns scattering the ashes. Suzy read from a book found in Stewart's library, by Dudley Zuver, The Universe is My Hobby, which was a favorite expression of Stewart's.  That phrase is actually engraved on his gravestone as an epitaph. We had the fen to ourselves, and the moment was somber, lovely and quiet. We then re-gathered a little later at the gravestone and planted a chrysanthemum, with the remaining ashes at the roots. I led a brief ritual there with some traditional words and prayers of committal, and a little more comment on his epitaph. We sang a Taize setting of Nunc Dimittis. People visited a bit and then we all adjourned to Maggie and Jerry's house for pizza. We ended up talking all afternoon, a spirited discussion about current politics. It turned out that Chuck was a lot more conservative than the rest of us, and he gamely defended his support for Ted Cruz and then Donald Trump, against a prevailing liberal/progressive majority opinion. It was civil and insightful and both Ellen and I felt privileged to be part of it - just the sort of discussion that should take place more in our society. It was a perfect day, one which Stewart would have loved.

In the fen

Stewart's marker

The entire group

Becky, Jerry, Ellen, me and Daniel