A leaf flutters to Earth

FROM DICK BERNARD’S BLOG: OUTSIDE THE WALLS

My friend Wayne Wittman wasn’t at his Minnesota Precinct Caucus on Tuesday, March 1.
My guess is he’d never have missed his precinct caucus. He was always an activist.
From his obituary: “Wayne lived every day of his 86 years to the fullest. He had a long, satisfying career, a family he deeply loved (who loved him equally). He had zillions of friends. He died with his boots on, doing what he loved. According to Ralph Waldo Emerson, Wayne was the definition of success: “To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children…to leave the world a better place…to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
As the story came across the internet: Wednesday night, Feb. 24, Wayne “had a heart attack while riding the MTC [Metropolitan Transit] bus home from a union gathering. He was rushed to the hospital but never regained consciousness.”
“A Leaf Flutters to Earth”?
Wayne Wittman was a common guy, like all of us.
We humans are all like leaves on a tree, and there are many trees, many varieties, in many environments, everywhere.
Just like human beings.
Wayne’s life of contributing to his family, very broadly defined, ended abruptly as he sat on a bus heading home from being of service to others. I’d guess that he’s happy that his death didn’t disrupt too many others’ lives. It would probably be the way he’d like to depart this earth for eternity … going home.
I know from knowing him, his particular “leaf” on life’s tree was a very productive one. Wherever people are in the world there are trees, and leaves. All of us are connected.
Wayne didn’t make his precinct caucus on Tuesday, March 1.
I’m sure he would tell us all: get involved in politics. “Politics” is each of us, at every level.
(Looking for Wayne’s leaf? It’s the golden one that just fluttered down to Earth …)
Wayne was in Vets for Peace (to which he recruited me a dozen years ago, and of which I’m still a member).
[Here is the Veterans for Peace’s Statement of Purpose:
We, having dutifully served our nation, do hereby affirm our greater responsibility to serve the cause of world peace. To this end we will work, with others, to increase public awareness of the costs of war; to restrain our government from intervening, overtly and covertly, in the internal affairs of other nations; to end the arms race and to reduce and eventually eliminate nuclear weapons; to seek justice for veterans and victims of war; to abolish war as an instrument of national policy.]