David M. Green: Purveyor of fine humour

Tag: funeral

  • Grandma’s Funeral and thoughts on Life

    Hello,

    Yesterday I attended my Grandma’s funeral at the beautiful Middlebrook Estate in McLaren Vale. It was a fitting service. I remember Grandma once told me she never wore black to a funeral, preferring instead to wear bright blue. So at her request, none of the guests wore black. It was one of the most brightly dressed groups of people I’ve seen. I myself wore a blue tie.

    Grandma loved clothes and designed many of her own outfits, and some of them were on display, as were some of her paintings she had painted herself. She really did make the most of life. She got out there and loved trying new things and loved showing her friends and family a good time. The music at the funeral reflected her love of musicals. And at the end, a lone bag-piper played ‘Amazing Grace’ as her hearse drove away. I couldn’t help but be reminded of the end sequence of ‘Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Kahn,’ but I was probably in the minority. Even so, it made the moment no less moving.

    I even learnt some things about her I didn’t know, especially about her younger years. For example, I had no idea she wanted to be an actress and joined a theatre company, and then for a while, she wanted to be a journalist. I’d almost forgotten she used to do a lot of creative writing. She encouraged me too when I began to show an interest in it. And at age 19, after a failed romance, she ran away with a friend to Melbourne and worked at a hotel. It sounded almost like a movie. Speaking of which, another interesting fact (that I knew already), in 1945 at the age of 15, she talked her way into a job as an usherette at the Regency theatre on Rundle Street, when at the time the minimum age for an usherette was 18. And funnily enough, on an interesting side note, I myself currently work at a cinema on Rundle Street.

    It was truly a celebration of the life of Terri Lawlor-Smith. No religious stuff. Just her life story, some testimonials, some anecdotes, lots of bright colours, delicious food and uplifting music. Some may say it wasn’t your “traditional” funeral, but really, who are they? It’s exactly the way Grandma would want us to remember her. She lived in the moment. She used to say she never worried about yesterday, because you couldn’t change it, and it wasn’t worth worrying about tomorrow, because it might never come. If there’s one thing we can learn from the life of my Grandma, it’s to remember that life is a precious gift. So don’t waste it sitting in a darkened room watching reality television, getting angry over something insignificant or worrying about the future. I mean sure, there’s a time and a place; don’t be reckless. But remember to enjoy yourself. You only get one shot at it. No regrets. And be nice to people, or at the very least, be less of a jerk, because life is just too short to worry. Live.

    Yours sincerely,
    David M. Green

  • Richard Marsland’s Funeral

    Hi all,

    I’ve just returned from Richard Marsland’s funeral at St Ignatius Church in Norwood. The place was packed. I’ve never seen so many people at a funeral. Granted, I’ve only been to a few, and they were all for family members who died in old age. It was a very touching service. And nice to see that the priest officiating, Farther Lawrie Moate, actually knew the Marsland family. His words were personal, accurate and moving, as was everything that was said by all the speakers, I must say.

    I was there in the capacity of an acquaintance, a colleague and a fan. I didn’t know Richard that well. I would have liked to have known him more. But I realise I am more privileged than most to have recorded that interview with him, and then to meet him in person just that one time. For most of the last two weeks I’ve felt shock more than anything. I felt like crying, but I didn’t. But then today when I saw Richard’s coffin being carried into the church, with Tony Martin as one of his pallbearers, I just lost it, along with most of the people around me, and not in the good way. Curiously though, I always figured I’d want my enemies carrying my coffin; not my friends. Personally I hate heavy lifting…

    There was laughter too of course. Just hearing about Richard as a youth and about his comic escapades with friends, and the pranks he used to pull on his sisters, I couldn’t help but smile. Tony Martin stood up at the front and lent into the mic, before saying “Normally this is where Richard would be checking the levels,” before delivering a warm tribute to Richard, his comedy and his work ethic. Outside there was a station wagon set up with two people in T-shirts reading “Generic Radio Station,” giving out “icy cold cans of coke” (room temperature) and Farmer’s Union Iced Coffee. A nice touch!

    There’s not much else I can say that hasn’t already been said. It’s sad. I’m sad. I hope I can bring joy and laughter to as many people as Richard did. That’s going to be my new ultimate life goal… well, I already had that goal, but hey, I’ll add “do it for Richard Marsland” to my list of reasons.

    Thank you also to the many people who have emailed me, shared your stories, and posted in forums, thanking and complimenting me for making my interview with Richard available to everyone online. It’s been downloaded over 400 times in the last 2 weeks. Like I’ve said, it was an absolute pleasure and a privilege to have had the little contact I had with Richard Marsland. A truly remarkable guy.

    Kind regards,
    David M. Green