The Freedom of A Willow Tree

As a child, I once wrote a poem that, unintentionally, angered my mother; a poem about my own demise.  She thought that, at the age of 9, I was far too young to even consider my own end.  But, even still, I can recall the words of this poem to this day along with  the whimsical imagination of a child.

Ssurely, everyone must die - but I wanted a celebration of a life worthy of remembrance.   Seemingly,  my thoughts about how to handle my remains have gone unchanged for over thirty years....

My Willow Tree

by Sean C. Robinson

Summer 1979

When I die, I’d like to be

Placed beneath a willow tree;

A strong, but silent, willow tree

That weeps for none but me.

So, place my ashes in an urn

And bury me after I am burned.

Allow me to be born again

In branches and leaves that dance in the wind.

Yes, when I die, I’d like to be

Born again as a willow tree.

So, when you visit,
don’t cry for thee

Because my willow
will always weep for me.

And I’ll grow strong and offer shade

And live with family throughout my days

As a strong and silent willow tree

That watches over years of family.

So after I have left this earthly frame

Bury me so I might live again

As a  strong, but silent, willow tree

That weeps for none but me.

More recently, I  met with a group of friends and discussed the fact that, culturally, we often forget that death is a part of the cycle of life. 

  

We fail to plan ahead and; therefore, leave our families with undue expenses at a time when stress and poor decision making skills are at a all-time high.  As a favor to ourselves and our families, we all decided to take a moment and do three things that would help ease the pain of our transitions:

• Create, notarize, and file our final will, 
• Open a savings account at a black owned bank and deposit funds for our funerals, and 
• If we are organ donors, we would designate how our organs are to be used to help other family members in need rather than just left for general distribution by the funeral homes / hospitals.

By doing these things in advance, many of the hard decisions that plague our surviving family members are removed.  Families often bicker over last minute details and a funeral is the wrong place to birth new hostilities.  So, by thinking of others even as you think of yourself, you may quail the tensions  of family division long before they become an issue.

I want a peaceful home going celebration.  I know what songs I would like to be played, how I would like to be remembered, and what I’d like to see done with the monies left behind from various insurance policies.  By creating scholarships, trust funds, and allocating property, it is safe to say we can all create a legacy that will begin to build generations of wealth long after we have left this realm.

But, alas, this is just ONE Man’s Opinion…. What about you?