Never Speak Ill of the Dead???

It's been three weeks since I last posted. Wow. Probably my longest dry spell. But it's hard to feel motivated while lying on your brother's couch feeling like shite! Hopefully, now that I'm feeling a wee bit better these days, I'll have more motivation and can get back on track with my observations.

Here's today observation:

Everyone's heard that old aphorism "never speak ill of the dead" (De mortuis nil nisi bonum) and I've always wondered why that is. I get that it's socially inappropriate to speak ill of the dead, but what if the person who dies is an asshole??

What brought this thought on was a posting on Facebook. A friend and one-time colleague had posted about the passing of a colleague from one of the law firms for which I once worked. As I said to another friend/colleague, I wasn't terribly torn up over this person's death because quite frankly, I didn't like the man. He and I often butted heads and I thought he was an arrogant prick. So now that he's dead, I'm suddenly suppose to feel like he was a great guy for whom this is a tragic loss. Ummmm, no. Sorry, I cannot do it. It goes against my basic belief about honesty in all things.

I'm quite certain that when I finally shuffle off this mortal coil in a few months, there were be plenty of people who will speak ill of me - that I was a bitch or they disliked me or whatever. Trust me, I do not expect to be canonized for sainthood. And I certainly do not want someone for whom I dislike to suddenly espouse my greatness.  That's being disingenuous.

Now, I'm not saying everyone should go around bashing those who have passed on before us, but neither do we need to root around in our heads and hearts to find something nice to say about people about whom we didn't care.

I will put this on record right here and now. For all those people who dislike me, feel free to say whatever you wish upon my demise. I promise that neither I nor my family will hold it against you. After all, I'll be dead and won't care. I won't even haunt you. Okay?

It's all about keeping it real, people!