A Quiet Death for a Humble Man

April 7th, 2005 by Scott Kirwin

Wife’s father passed away this morning at the age of 80, his wife of 58 years and his daughters at his bedside. He took his last breath and simply didn’t take another. He died as he had lived - quietly and with dignity.

He was born in a hotel in New Orleans. World War 2 veteran who served with the US Navy Raiders in Burma. 26 years as an officer in the Navy. A research chemist who as a kid regularly blew things up in his parents garage.

He lived by the rules - and suffered accordingly - raising two sons and two daughters. He saw one of those sons slip away into madness, another die of diabetes complications. His last months were spent supporting his daughter recovering from alcoholism and divorce.

He was a quiet, gentle man who never complained. He was extremely rational, and taught me the importance and application of the scientific method in daily life.

The last conversation I had with him on Sunday was the only one I ever felt comfortable having with him. Our generations are too different - 80 and 40 - but his was by far the greater of the two.

He will be missed.

Posted in America, Heroes, Alcoholism, Favorite Posts

One Response to “A Quiet Death for a Humble Man”

  1. The Razor » A Quiet Death For a Humble Man - One Year On wrote on 04/7/06 at 7:02 am :

    […] A year ago my father-in-law passed away ten days before his 81st birthday. I wrote about it in this post - one of a string of my most personal and I think, best, writings. […]