End of the year - end of a life 

20 December 2008

Last Tuesday night, my mother died after a long and brave battle against the inevitable.
Today, we buried her body, that she left behind and held a remembrance service for her. At that service, I held the following speech for the congregation that I would like to share with you.

In May of this year, one month after we had head that our mother had a life expectancy of no more than three to six months, m and my friend Charles were standing on top of the Borobudur, a Buddhist temple in Indonesia. Up there is a Buddha statue where, if you touch it, you can make a wish. Back then, I have made the wish that my mother would have an as long and as good as possible life.
Now, eight months later, I can look back and could say that the Buddha statue has done a good job. Our mother has after all surpassed the most negative and most positive expectations and has done so in a relatively good and painless way.
But it would be pretty simple and naive to thank a stone statue for this. Our mother has told us several times that she felt supported: supported by the people around her. And all of you have contributed a bit to that. By sending postcards, calling, sending emails, coming to visit, name it. It has been all those small things that made her last months more bearable. It is all those small things that show that everyone has something divine in himself that can reduce the suffering of someone else. It is that divine part in us that makes us human beings.
I would like to thank you for that and at the same time ask you to continue recognising that divine part in yourselves and use it. Because also after today our family needs you. And also after today the world needs the divine that lives inside you in order for the light to overcome the darkness.

Rest in peace, mum.