DICK - Eulogy for a good man The greater portion of those, who in times past have stood in my shoes, in their grief, have endeavored to eulogize the deceased. So too - I shall endeavor to speak my loss. Dick Compton was a man - nothing more and nothing less - the sum total of his living experiences - his interactions with God, self and mankind. Yet he was , and his memory shall be, a permanent thread in the fabric of life. Now we know that no man is truly dead so long as one person lives whose live was touched by his sacrifice. This fact is readily acknowledged by this present temporal world, how much more so in the spiritual kingdom, wherein was so much of Dick's life expended. If I were to recount to you in detail and painstaking completeness, all of those actions for which Dick Compton is at this present time being held accountable, you would , I fear, still receive a somewhat imperfect account. For if we speak well of the dead, beyond that which we believe ourselves capable, then we may dismiss , as puffery, his more nobler deeds. I will therefore spare you the strain of a litany of those battles in which Dick fought so valiantly , on behalf of our commander-in-chief, our Lord Jesus Christ. Very shortly an infinitely keener judge shall look upon his contribution , and I do believe, with all my heart, issue a decree of " Well done , my good and faithful servant ". It was God that ordained that our character be forged on the anvil of life by the blacksmith of experience; and it is God alone who shall judge the merits of the steel so fiercely tempered and hammered into shape at so great a cost. For my part I count it joy that I have had the privilege to know Dick Compton and to learn from him that truly vital gift for which he will be most fondly remembered. For it was from Dick Compton that I learned to pray for others with the same fervent desire that I would have God hear my own prayers. Does this seem like a simple thing ? I know that it is not. For when I saw Dick Compton on his knees praying for others he was as a Sequoia among the pines. It is from this elevated stature that the long shadow of friendship shall lie serenely across the corridors of time. The remains of the deceased are of small consequence and with little remorse I bid them goodbye, but to those angels who high and holy task it is to usher into Heaven the souls of those whom the Lord loves, I say, " Hold wide the gates of Glory,for Dick Compton is coming through ", and to you, old friend, I'll bid adieu, until we meet again. William Everyman 'aka ' your pal Bill Alexander
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