I have to admit that when a dear friend of mine texted me some days ago with the message: “when can I call you, I have a special question? ”, my mind directly went to funny situations, strange and extraordinary questions, tricky questions, dilemma’s started wandering around in my mind as I am always inventing stories and “what if “ situations (helped me loads when I was an actress by the way)
So when I called him, I was in the laughing out loud mode (you know that emoji )and with my over- enthusiastic voice, almost like Tom Cruise playing Jerry Meguire shouting “show me the money”, I asked him : “How are you and tell me what that special question about?”
A silence that was just too long followed by a sob, not loud but enough to made me realize in a glimpse that the special question was not about something funny or inappropriate.
“My father passed away, yesterday, and I wanted to ask you if you could speak, Have you done this before?”
A lightning straight to my heart! A quick look at my agenda showed me, shopping with the daughters, nothing important, so I said yes I will and no I have never done this before. Sometimes your heart tells you when it is time to leave your comfort zone.
So I asked him whether there was a text already…“Not yet” he answered another sob sounded in his voice.
Tell me more about your dad I asked him. And I listened for about half an hour and took notes.
He cried, he laughed, and I took a ride with him in the 84 years of his father’s life. I said give me some hours I will write a text, and then you tell me if this is what you want me to read.
I started writing and send him the text. To be sure that what I wrote was good enough I wrote an e-mail to one of my best friends, with my text in attachment.
Some friends and my family know how I am in ceremonies when someone passed away, anything but a hero. My voice has been trained so hopefully will not let me down tomorrow.
At 13h will remember this amazing person, and I feel sad, first of all because I never had the chance to meet him, but moreover for my friends that lost a very special father, a father in law and a grandfather. But I am convinced that as my last words will be : he is watching over the stars.
