My friend Eyrk’s brother died suddenly in April.  Although I’ve experienced my share of death, including the sudden, untimely kind, I have never been able to form words of comfort that didn’t feel trite. But I’ve always loved Lewis Thomas’ essay "Death in the Open." I first read it in his book Lives of A Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher, a collection of 29 essays, when I was in college. And to this day, I re-read it anytime someone close to me dies. I hope Eryk finds the same sense of comfort in it.