The Self-Written Obituary of Mom Who Lost Her Cancer Battle Will Melt Her Heart

03 Apr, 2015 by Cassy Fiano

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It’s not often that an obituary goes viral. But Emily Phillips’ moving self-written obituary has touched hearts around the world.

Phillips, 69, of Orange Park, Florida, died just 29 days after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, but her sassy personality lives on in what has become a viral self-written obituary. By Thursday, the Times-Union’s Facebook post of the obituary had garnered more than 4,000 “likes” and her story had gone national.

“We all think our mom is the best – as they should,” Upright said, adding that Phillips was a teacher until the very end. “To have that mom and a moment of clarity and a moment of grace with a sense of humor — which is how she raised us — was just truly something remarkable.”

Phillips details growing up as a middle child, marrying the “man of [her] dreams” and falling in love with her grandchildren. She wrote about twirling a baton to the tune of “Dixie” for the Miss North Carolina pageant, and laughing at her granddaughter for shaving off one of her eyebrows. She also apologized to a friend for dating a boy she had a crush on.

“And if you don’t believe it, just ask me,” Phillips wrote. “Oh wait, I’m afraid it’s too late for questions. Sorry. So … I was born; I blinked; and it was over. No buildings named after me; no monuments erected in my honor. But I DID have the chance to know and love each and every friend as well as all my family members. How much more blessed can a person be?”

How moving to hear such a fundamental truth: this woman may not have had the extraordinary life that we typically read about in newspapers, but she was loved by her family and her friends. More of us should understand and be grateful for a small thing like that, which actually is all anyone really needs.