On November 1st and 2nd Mexicans celebrate friends and relatives who have died. With typical pageantry they decorate their homes and graves with altars or ofrendas where they provide favorite foods and drinks for the departed, make masks with the names of the deceased and offer poems and light-hearted epitaphs in festive gatherings. As a yearly holiday it pays respect to treasured family and friends, both living and dead, and helps keep their memories and friendship a part of their lives. It’s a lovely tribute.
For me, this time provides an opportunity to remember Paul Murphy, a good friend who just recently died after an extended illness. He is gone without fanfare or traditional services as he wished. Yet for those who knew him, family and friends, he will always be remembered for what he was, a good man respected by all who met him.
Though we met later in life and were not life-long friends, there was an almost immediate connection between us, an appreciation for one another that defies words. It was an instant bonding, one of those personal moments that happens infrequently. In our case, it was, no doubt, helped by our mutual appreciation of good scotch whiskey.
So this day, I want to say goodbye and hello to Paul Murphy as I will each year at this time.