In Memory Of Julian Jacobs – יהודה רחמים הלוי בן אסתר ויוסף ז"ל –

In Memory Of Julian Jacobs – יהודה רחמים הלוי בן אסתר ויוסף ז"ל –

5 November, 1932- 10 February, 2013.

Our dear, dear and beloved Julian,

I’m writing on behalf of Michele and our children to say farewell. You have departed on to the next stage of your cosmic journey. Godspeed. We will surely miss you. We will miss your amazing personality. We will miss your incredible optimism. We will miss your enveloping warmth. We will miss being wrapped in your embrace. We will miss the incisiveness of your insights. We will miss the heartwarming pride of your Jewishness. We will miss your quintessentially Southern manner. We will miss the wink of your mischievousness. And oh, will we ever miss the breadth of your unbelievable smile.

We often think of ourselves as a body that has a soul. I firmly believe it’s the other way around. We are soul, we are spirit. God loans us a body for the duration of our sojourn on earth, and then when the loan is up, we have to return the body, but our soul continues on its cosmic journey. That’s how I interpret our Sages description of us humans having “Helek Eloka MiMa’al.”

For at the end of the day we leave behind nothing of our physical selves. We can only leave behind a legacy for those who follow and remember us, those who are still on their Earthly journey.

We came into your life only 14 years ago. You immediately adopted us as your own. I remember so well you introducing me to your friends in Atlanta not as “My Daughter’s Brother-in-law” but as “My Mechutan.” I was “yours.” What a great feeling that gave me! You shared with us, accepted us and loved us. We became your children too. And you became our Saba Yudele as well.

So go in peace beloved Julian. As much as we will miss it, we will celebrate your life, and it will comfort us.