when the silver cord is cut
My wonderful nephew Joe died last Friday. He was 19. Joe was a sophomore at Thomas Aquinas College and passed away in his sleep. He was beloved by all. His death is a shock and has broken our family’s hearts wide open.
Joe suffered from epilepsy and lived with the reality of the danger it posed. But he did not live in fear nor did he choose to play the victim. If anything, his condition seemed to make him lean even more into pursuing what truly matters.
I have never explicitly shared why I started calling this site Silver Cord Stories but this seems like the right moment.
About a year ago, our pastor was teaching through the book of Ecclesiastes. It’s a wildly honest book that wrestles with the brokenness of this world and the hard questions for which there are not always simple answers. More often than not, the writer ends his musings by proclaiming, “Everything is meaningless!”
Despite this—or perhaps because of it—by the end of the book he reaches a much deeper conclusion. “Remember your Creator… before the silver cord is cut.” Hearing this, my heart was tugged toward writing stories, often funny ones, that might force people to slow down and consider their mortality and the priorities that should flow from a proper understanding of it.
My nephew understood better than most of us that the glittery connection between our bodies and our souls comes with a ticking clock. And he lived his life accordingly.
He loved God and sought after him daily. And he loved others. Not just his parents and siblings, but his friends. My sister shared that Joe had recently deleted many of the apps off his phone and was filling the void with prayer and by connecting more intentionally with his classmates. On summer breaks, when his college friends scattered, Joe devoted his time to teaching swim lessons at the local YMCA and by running his own sports camp which he opened to every kid in his community. One is hard pressed to find a child in my sister’s small town who had not been taught something by Joe.
Love for God.
Devotion to family.
Surrounded by friends.
In service to others.
Those are the markers of a life well-lived. And his passing is our great loss.
(You can read more about Joe and his life here.)
If only the world had more Joes. He sounds like he was a remarkable young man. As the parent of a child with epilepsy, this brings up so many emotions for me and my heart hurts extra hard for your sister and your fam. Have been sending love and prayers your way.
Dear Bob, When I bought a bronze plaque on a remembrance wall at my university in honor of my mother, I took a phrase from Milton's elegy to a young college friend who drowned: "Look Homeward, Angel," to which I added "You Who Read These Words." Your nephew Joe got Home before the rest of us.