I've mentioned that I work part time at the funeral home here in town. I've been called in to work at a visitation and funeral tomorrow for Benjamin David McCormick, whose obituary starts with this sentence: "Benjamin "Ben" David McCormick, 75, of Beach Park, IL, passed away on Sunday, April 3, 2011, at home after a long battle with prostate cancer." I'll probably have the honor of driving him to his final resting place. You can find his obit by Googling his name.
In the three years I've worked at the funeral home, this is the third funeral I've been involved in where the man succumbed to prostate cancer. The other two were younger than I am, Mr. McCormick is ten years older. There are four of us part timers, so I work at only about a fourth of the funeral services, and there may have been others.
This is going to be more emotional than most services for me. A veteran of the Marine Corps, he leaves a wife to whom he was married for just a few months less than 50 years, and lots of children, grandchildren, and a couple of great grandchildren.
There was a time when 75 seemed old. Not so old now. May he rest in peace.