Thoughts from Ashton Smith's Funeral

I attended Ashton Smith's funeral today. It was heartwarming to see several Ninth Ward members in attendance to pay honor to their neighbor, friend, and fellow ward member.

As often happens at funerals, I thought, "Why didn't I take the time to get to know this remarkable person a little bit better?" Of course, one of the challenges of mortality is that there is never enough time and too many wonderful people to get to know.

Still, thanks to the chance of my finding myself within the same ward boundaries as Ashton, I got to know, just a little bit, this remarkable man.

One of Ashton Smith's daughters read some lyrics from Kenny Chesney's song, "Don't Blink." "Don't blink, just like that you're six years old And you take a nap And you wake up and you're twenty-five ... Trust me friend, a hundred years Goes faster than you think, so don't blink."

Cherish these relationships with which we've been blessed. Today, I was reminded of the findings of the multi-decade-running Harvard longevity study. "The Harvard Study has found a strong association between happiness and close relationships like spouses, family, friends, and social circles. 'Personal connection creates mental and emotional stimulation, which are automatic mood boosters, while isolation is a mood buster,' says Dr. Waldinger." https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/the-secret-to-happiness-heres-some-advice-from-the-longest-running-study-on-happiness-2017100512543 

Through living the gospel of Jesus Christ, Ashton Smith discovered those things that brings joy and meaning to life. While we are still around, let's go and do likewise.

Music, singing, specifically belonging to barber shop quartets, was an important part of Ashton's life.

Ashton Smith served his country and his fellow soldiers in the Pacific Theater of World War 2.

Ashton Smith taught math in the public school system. Not only was it his career, it was one of his passions. Here is a photo of Ashton with a math problem that he did for fun. He didn't work on math problems, he played with them.