The Promise

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The Promise

One evening I found myself at a conference in
Washington, D.C. And as fate would have it,
Bucky Fuller happened to be making a presentation
that evening at another conference in the very
same hotel. I got to the ballroom in time to hear
the end of Bucky's lecture. I was in awe of this
little man in his eighties, with his clear
mind, deep wisdom and boundless energy.
At the end of the talk, we walked together
through the underground parking
lot to his airport limousine.

"I've got to go to New York City tonight for
another presentation," he said, looking at me
with an anxiousness that I had rarely seen in Bucky.
"You know, Annie's not doing well. I'm very
concerned about her."
We hugged.

[The Promise]

Bucky Fuller had once confided to me that he
had promised his wife Annie to die before she did,
so that he could be there to welcome her when it
was her turn. I took the comment as a hope,
not a commitment. Which shows how
greatly I underestimated Buckminster Fuller.

Shortly after Bucky's presentation in New York,
he learned that Annie had lapsed into a coma in
a hospital in Los Angeles. Doctors felt that there
was a good chance she would not regain
consciousness. Bucky took the first flight he
could get. Upon arriving in Los Angeles, he went
immediately to Annie's bedside. Sitting beside her,
he closed his eyes.
And quietly died.

The power to choose life fully was something that
Bucky exemplified. So much so that he had the
power to choose death when it was time, peacefully,
with arms wide open to the universe that he served.
It was simply another courageous step forward.

Hours later, Annie peacefully joined him in death.
He had kept his promise. He was waiting for her.

[The Promise]

By Thomas F. Crum (c) 1998
Chicken Soup for the Couple's Soul
by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen,
Mark & Chrissy Donnelly and
Barbara De Angelis, Ph.D.

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