Waldo

I've been inspired to write something on the subject and the passing of an old acquaintance has occasioned me to say some things about the topic of death: specifically, dying alone.

A regular customer, someone whose given name I do not know, but whom we at Tony Roma's affectionately referred to as "Waldo" passed away within the last week or so. We called him "Waldo" because of the similarities in physical appearance of the character from the books ("Where's Waldo?") along with the fact that he was by himself (like Waldo was in the books...always in the midst of a crowd, but never with a group). Waldo was one (like the rest of us) who had some interesting quirks...he wanted things a particular way, would drop by after the completion of a sporting event to see the reactions of people in the restaurant, and as he would eat he would kinda talk to himself and groan (like Bob, from "What About Bob?"). I don't know much more about Waldo than that he was in his late 40's and he did not seem to have any close friends or relatives (though I might be mistaken about this). I am aware that he died of a massive heart attack in his house and was not found until 1-2 days later.

You might disagree with me, but I sense that there is no tragedy worse than dying alone. I don't mean necessarily being by yourself when you die but having a close network of family and/or friends who would immediately know you had gone (though that would certainly be tragic too). I am talking about the type of loneliness that encapsulates more than just the last few minutes or hours of your life; the lack of that network of friends/family in your day-to-day life.

Loneliness is the first thing in creation that God says is "not good" (Gen. 2.18) and we might consider "loneliness" to be a synonym for "fallen-ness." Jon Foreman's song says "What are we, if we're not alone?" And in another song he mourns the loss of one whose both "birth and death were both over with no one to grieve."

Christ knew what it was to be alone...and die alone! I think this is yet another way he has "recapitulated" the original Adam and identified with unreconciled humanity. He has gone to the point of utter despair and tasted the most tragic of circumstances...humiliating himself "to the point of death, even death on a cross," perhaps the most lonely (at least humiliating) form of death. It is not my aim to provide a pat answer to a tragedy, but this fact (that God knows what it is to die alone because of Christ) is the only consolation I have in the recognition of the loss of one who was "alone." Still, there are countless others across the world who "die alone" and may never be thought of or missed by anyone else on earth. Christ, have mercy!