With the recent passing of Leonard Nimoy, many people have been recalling his signature line of, “Live long and prosper.” Images of Spock, with his hand in the traditional fingers apart greeting as the line was delivered, flood our memories of evenings spent watching Star Trek. We do not think of it as “Star Trek: The Original Series”, for it was the only series. There was no Next Generation, Voyager or Enterprise and that fact probably makes me seem old to some of my readers! We think of “Troubles with Tribbles” and the many adventures they had aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise. We also recall the man behind Spock as the humanitarian, the artist, the actor, the husband, father and grandfather. It is his life, not just one role he played that is his legacy. While thousands of Trekkies mourn the passing of Spock, his family and friends grieve the loss of the man, not the character he played.
Much was made of the fact that his good friend, William Shatner, was unable to attend his funeral. How refreshing it was to see the news portray the importance of the funeral service as a necessary gathering to mourn and to say “good-bye.” Shatner was so upset to miss it, that he “live-tweeted” his version of a funeral service to share his memories and hear from others who were also sad to hear of Nimoy’s passing. Conversation turned to debate on whether or not Shatner should have changed his plans and attended the service. Again and again we heard the pros and cons and protocols surrounding the attendance at a funeral service for a friend. People were focused on the benefit to the family to have friends around them and the comfort it provided to those who mourned the deceased, be it family or friends. Funerals became important all thanks to the death of one Vulcan…I mean man.
In an industry that has to fight to remain relevant in people’s lives, it is a powerful testament to the role we play when we see the media giving value to one man’s funeral service. We see this when any celebrity or well-known person dies. Who can forget the young princes at their mother’s, Princess Diana’s, funeral? John John’s salute? Big Bird singing “It’s Not Easy Being Green” at Jim Henson’s memorial service? Each image reinforces the role of the funeral and the rituals at the time of death.
The families we serve may not be celebrities, but they too deserve all of the rituals and customs we can provide. We remind them of the meaning behind Spock’s words, “Live long...” Whether they were blessed with a long life or if their life was too short in years, we are there to provide comfort and to bring out the gifts contained in the years they did have. We provide a space where family and friends can recall the times they spent together. We encourage them to have hope, that the years ahead will still have meaning and joy. The rest of his greeting was, “and prosper.” We may think of financial prosperity when we hear this, but what does it really mean to prosper? The dictionary states that it is: to thrive, flourish, be successful or fortunate. This is what every person strives for and it is often makes up part of the content of the eulogy. We may not be able to measure a person’s prosperity, but we can certainly acknowledge their good fortune in life.
What you may not realize is that there is a response to the greeting, “Live long and prosper.” The response is, “Peace and long life.” Imagine if instead of the trite, “Hello, how are you?” and the response of, “Good,” instead we had the interchange of greetings wishing one another a long life, prosperity and peace. These three things sum up the yearnings of our soul. To live a long life surrounded by loving family and friends, to be blessed with good fortune and to have peace in all moments. To have these things would be to have lived a very good life. Spock may not have been able to express emotions, but he somehow knew the desires of our hearts. His logical mind cut right to the chase and reminded us what matters most. In the language of his Vulcan homeland, I wish for each of you to “dif tor heh smusma.”