“The thoughts and prayers really helped us through.” Teddy’s mother said, still fighting back tears at the mention of her son. “And to a lesser degree that one thought that arrived without a prayer.”
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| Peterson, still dead. |
Mrs. Peterson was referring to the ‘thoughts’ Teddy’s lifelong atheist pal Joseph sent to the grieving family.
“What was I supposed to do, compromise my beliefs?” Joseph asked, not believing this was still a topic of conversation two full weeks later. “It’s all empty platitudes, man.”
“You can shove those thoughts up your ass, Joey!” Teddy’s brother Robby screamed after opening the sympathy card Joseph had sent the family. “Thoughts aren’t going to carry us through the shadow of death. I’ll tell you what I thought … I thought you and Teddy were friends!”
“You can send thoughts without prayers. This is America.” Joseph tried to explain. “It’s just a dumb thing people say. It’s like saying something was ‘surreal.’ It doesn’t mean anything … There is no God and Teddy’s death proves it. Prayers are just stupid things you say out loud to make people uncomfortable.”
Teddy’s sister Margaret, for one, would have preferred to receive prayers and not thoughts. “Thoughts aren’t going to bring Teddy back to life, but prayers might.” She said. “I mean we’re talking about Jesus Christ … Lazarus. Hello?”
As of this printing Teddy Peterson is still dead. So the next time you consider sending thoughts, or thoughts and prayers, to someone who’s lost someone, also consider sending along some sort of experimental reanimating gel.
