Miss Helen:

Well, now you've done it. In all the years I have known you, you have never disappointed me once, until now: by leaving the world when so many of us wanted you to stay.

I know you did it for unselfish reasons, which is just like you, of course; but we would very much like to have been asked for our opinion.

Had you begun to think of yourself as less useful than before? Past your "sell-by date" as you sometimes said? Not able to help around the house as much. Not able to drive your older friends all over creation for this and that errand, because the "poor old things" didn't have anyone else to do it.

You were still able to play multiple simultaneous games of Scrabble with your daughter in America; to email us every day with all the details, large and small, that you observed and were good enough to share with us; to remind us to look up whenever there was a full moon; to send us a "pinch and a punch" on the first of every month.

All those things, and so many others.

It's just like you to decide that since you couldn't help everyone around you as much as you used to do, you might as well move along and get out of the way. That's your confounded unselfishness showing.

We strongly disagree with your decision. All those helpful things you did were wonderful, but they weren't nearly as important as having you with us.

Now you've gone off and left us, without giving us any say in the matter. So we must take our consolations where we can. You had suffering in your life, and we're glad you won't have any more. You had all the aches and pains that age visits upon mortal beings, and we're glad those won't vex you any longer.

It is now up to us, the ones left behind, to remember your kindness and your extraordinarily generous and thoughtful nature. Very few have ever had the fortune to know such a fundamentally good soul.

Knowing you has made us all better people. Your life blessed ours, and showed us how to summon "the better angels of our nature." We will of course often fail to equal your example, but having that example within us will help us to remember what is possible, and to try to achieve it when we can.

You will always be a part of every one of us. One of the very best parts of all.