George W. Bush Delivers Emotional Eulogy for His Father George H.W. Bush

distinguished guests including our presidents and first ladies government officials foreign dignitaries and Friends Jeb Neil Marvin daro and I and our families thank you all for being here I once heard it said of man that the idea is to die young as late as possible at age 85 a favorite pastime of George HW Bush was firing up his boat to fidelity and opening up to three 300 horsepower engines to fly joyfully fly across the Atlantic with the Secret Service boats straining to keep up at age 90 George HW Bush parachuted out of an aircraft and landed on the grounds of st. Ann's by the sea in Kennebunkport Maine the church where his mom was married and where he worshipped often mother like to say he chose the location just in case the chute didn't open in his 90s he took great delight when his closest pal James a baker smuggled a bottle of Grey Goose vodka into his hospital room apparently it paired well with the state Baker had delivered from Morton's to his very last dazed as life was instructive as he aged he taught us how to grow with dignity humor and kindness and when the good Lord finally called how to meet him with courage and with the joy of the promise of what lies ahead one reason dad knew how to die young is that he almost did it twice when he was a teenager a staph infection nearly took his life few years later he was alone in the Pacific on a life raft praying that his rescuers would find him before the enemy did God answered those prayers it turned out he had other plans for George HW Bush for dads part I think those brushes with death meeting cherished the gift of life and he vowed to live every day to the fullest that was always busy a man in constant motion but never too busy to share his love of life with those around him he taught us to love the outdoors he loved watching dogs flusher Covey he loved Landing the elusive striper and once confined to a wheelchair he seemed happy a sitting in his favorite perch on the back porch at walkers point contemplating the majesty of the Atlantic that horizons he saw were bright and hopeful he was a genuinely optimistic man and that optimism guided his children and made each of us believe that anything was possible he continually broaden his horizons with daring decisions he was a patriot after high school he put College on hold and became a Navy fighter pilot as world war ii broke out like many of his generation he never talked about his service until his time as a public figure forced his hand we learned of the attack on chichi Jima the mission completed the shoot down we learned the death of his crewmates whom he thought about throughout his entire life and we learned of the rescue and then another audacious decision he moved his young family from the comforts of the East Coast to Odessa Texas he and mom adjusted to their arid surroundings quickly he's a tolerant man after all he was kind and neighborly to the women with whom he mom and I shared a bathroom in our small duplex even after you learned their profession ladies of the night dad could relate to people from all walks of life he was an empathetic man he valued character over pedigree and he was no cynic he looked for the good a nice person and he usually found it dad taught us that public service is noble and necessary that one can serve with integrity and hold true to the important values like faith and family he strongly believed that it was important to give back to the community and country in which one lived he recognized as serving others enriched the giver soul to us his was the brightest of a thousand points of light in victory he shared credit when he lost he shouldered the blame he accepted that failure is a part of living a full life but taught us never to be defined by failure he showed us how setbacks can strengthen none of his disappointments could compare with one of life's greatest tragedies the loss of a young child Jeb and I were too young to remember the pain and agony he and mom felt when our three year old sister died we only learned later that Dad a man of quiet faith prayed for her daily he was sustained by the love of the Almighty and the real and enduring love of her mom dad always believed that one day he would hug his precious Robin again he loved to laugh especially at himself he could tease a needle but never out of malice he placed great value on a good joke so I chose Simpson to speak on email he had a circle of friends with whom he shared or received the latest jokes his grading system for the quality of the joke was classic George Bush the rare sevens and eights were considered huge winners most of Mothe color George Bush knew how to be a true and loyal friend he nurtured and honored many his many friendships with a generous in giving soul there exists thousands of handwritten notes encouraging or sympathizing or thanking his friends and acquaintances he had an enormous capacity to give of himself many a person would tell you that dad became a mentor and a father figure in their life he listened and he consoled he was their friend I think if Don Rhodes Taylor Blanton Jim Nance Arnold Schwarzenegger and perhaps the unlikeliest of all the man who defeated him Bill Clinton my siblings and I refer to the guys in this group as brothers from other mothers he taught us that a day was not meant to be wasted he played golf at a legendary pace I always wonder why I insisted on speed golf he's a good golfer well here's my conclusion he played fast so he could move on to the next event to enjoy the rest of the day to expend his enormous energy to live at all he was born with just two settings full throttle then sleep taught us what it means to be a wonderful father a grandfather and great-grandfather he was firm in his principles and supportive as we began to seek her own ways he encouraged and comforted but never steered we tested his patience I know I did but he always responded with the great gift of unconditional love last Friday when I was told he had minister live I called him the guy answered the phone said he I think he can hear you but he hadn't said anything for most of the day I said dad I love you and you've been a wonderful father and the last words he would ever say on earth were I love you too - I seem as close to perfect but not totally perfect his short game was lousy he wasn't exactly Fred Astaire on the dance floor the man couldn't stomach vegetables especially broccoli and by the way he passed these genetic defects along to us finally every day of a 73 years of marriage dad taught us all what it means to be a great husband he married a sweetheart he had order he laughed and cried with her he was dedicated to her totally in his old age dad enjoyed watching police show reruns the volume on high all the while holding mom's hand after mom died dad was strong but all he really wanted to do was hold mom's hand again of course dad taught me another special lesson he showed me what it means to be a president who serves with integrity leads with courage and acts with love in his heart for the citizens of our country when the history books are written they will say that George HW Bush was a great president of the United States a diplomat of unmanned skill a commander-in-chief of formidable accomplishment and a gentleman who executed the duties of his office with dignity and honor in his inaugural address the 41st president of the United States said this we cannot hope only to leave our children a bigger car a bigger bank account we must hope to give them a sense of what it means to be a loyal friend a loving parent a citizen who leaves his home his neighborhood and town better than he found it what do we want the men and women who work with us to save when we are no longer there that we were more driven to succeed than anyone around us or that we stopped to ask of a sick child had gotten better and stayed a moment there to trade a word of friendship well dad we're gonna remember you for exactly that and much more and we're gonna miss you your decency sincerity and kind soul will stay with us forever so through our tears let us know the blessings of knowing and loving you a great and noble man the best father a son or daughter could have and in our grief but a smile knowing that dad is hugging robbing and holding mom's hand again [Applause]

Channel: The Wall Street Journal

Views: 4,741,646

Keywords: George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, Alan Simpson, DONALD TRUMP, BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT, FUNERAL, UNITED STATES, EULOGY, Executive Branch, North America, state funeral, former president, usnews

Id: htPQrCBLBaQ

Length: 12min 54sec (774 seconds)

Published: Wed Dec 05 2018