Sad news today – Jennifer Rardin, author of the Jaz Parks series, passed away on September 20th. She was 45 years old. She leaves behind a husband and two teenage daughters.
When something like this happens, I always think about what we leave behind. Artists, at least, have a tangible answer – they leave us with performances caught on tape and film, artworks, words on paper. Before she passed away, Jennifer completed the final book in her series. Her footprint in ink remains.
But more importantly, she leaves the memories. When I was at my Grandfather’s funeral, I looked around at all the people telling stories of his life and thought, this, right here, is what’s left of a man’s life. His family, and the stories we tell each other. The ways he lives on in those who knew him.
In the end, that’s really all we are – the stories we leave behind.
Leave a Reply