The news just broke a little while ago that the great senator from the commonwealth of Massachusetts, Edward "Ted" Kennedy, passed away from the brain tumor he had been so fiercely fighting.
At this moment in history, it is sad to see the great Lion of the Senate sail away on his journey to be reunited with his friends and loved ones, just on the eve of real health care reform.
Over the last year I have missed his passionate, dignified speeches from the floor of the Senate as he championed cause after cause for the average American. And I will continue to miss his rhetoric. He was able to gracefully and powerfully speak to any issue and make it seem solveable and noble. Often it seemed that he was a greater champion for the middle class than those politicians sent from the middle class to the Senate.
A brain tumor is not a pretty way to die. The effect it has on the person's ability to communicate, the decline it causes and the sadness felt by his loved ones is poignant. My mother died of a brain tumor, a result of her breast cancer. I know that tonight Teddy's family is feeling relief that he is once again whole, relief that their burden is lifted, profound sadness that he is gone completely from their lives on this earth, and an awareness of the gaping hole left in their lives. But I also hope that they feel the joy of his moving to a new life free of pain and sorrow, where he can once again see his brothers, and embrace his mother, and receive the reward God has for him for his dedication to the idea that God's people feed, clothe and care for one another.
Ted Kennedy will continue to be sorely missed. But I think that those he has inspired will step up to take on his mantle of service, and achieve all the dreams he strove for in his many years in the Senate.
But for now, we'll shed some tears.
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