Scattering the ashes

Posted by Vale

“And when did you last see your father?
Was it when they burned the coffin? Put the lid on?
When he exhaled his last breath?
When he sat up and said something?
When he last recognized you?
When he last smiled?

When did you last see your father?
The last time he was healthy, active?
The last time he had an argument about something?

Those weeks in which we tried to say goodbye
were like a series of depletion’s.
Each day I thought
‘he can’t get less like himself than this.’
Yet each day he did.
So I’ve been trying to recall
the last time I actually saw him.
The last time he was unmistakeably… there.
In the fullness of being,
I dunno… him.”

The closing words of the film – And when did you last see your father? – spoken by Colin Firth.

The film can be found here.

The original book by Blake Morrison here.