Haunted Through iChat: Bereavement in the Modern Age

A friend of mine passed away very suddenly a few months ago. It was a horrible shock and very sad. He was one of my iChat buddies, and although we didn’t talk everyday, just seeing his name flash up when he was online made me feel good, because I knew he was okay and he was there if I needed him. The month after he died I’d glance down the list of offline buddies and see his name. Knowing that his strap would never flash up again gave me a horrible empty feeling. When I think about what an amazing person he was and how his life has so unjustly been taken away at his very young age it breaks my heart.

So you’ll understand my mixed emotions when I switched on my computer, logged into iChat and noticed that my dead friend is somehow “online now”. Somebody is obviously using his computer and has set the status to “Away”. I’ll say. You don’t get much more “Away” than being dead, do you. However, thinking of my friend just being “Away” comforts me, makes me feel like he’s still with me.

This is bereavement in the modern age. I actually found out about his death through facebook. His facebook page is still going and his friends and family write notes of love on his page for him.

I wish he was still here.