If Rooney could reflect on his passing

Sad to hear Andy Rooney of “60 Minutes” fame passed away at 92. He made complaining something of an art form. Mr. Rooney might feel he died prematurely. I can almost hear him say: “There must be something okay about dying. Everybody does it sooner or later. I never liked the idea myself. It seems there should be some kind of choice in the matter. If you want to stick around as long as Methuselah, what’s wrong with that? You might get a little tired of meat loaf after 900 years but, life’s daily grind also has its endless possibilities.

“Many of my colleagues here on CBS have died over the years. I wonder if I will ever see Walter Cronkite again. Will he look the same? That idea never really made any sense to me. Why die only to look the same? It seems like a roundabout way of doing things. I don’t want to get a letter from some church in Missouri scolding me for doubting God’s wisdom. My greatest insurance policy at this point in life is not to get in trouble with God.

“Charles Frohman said, ‘Why fear death? It is the most beautiful adventure in life.’ I surely hope so. I was due for some kind of vacation.”

Peter L. Bateman

Lake Barrington