After the Death in Pictures

The Washington Post published a photo gallery yesterday called "Remnants of a Life" about 104-year-old Classie Morant. The poignant images, by photojournalist Carol Guzy, are accompanied by a narrative of Morant's life and death, including the details family and friends must handle after the death. A hospice chaplain, Rev. Robbie Wellington, speaks at her funeral service.

An accompanying article appeared earlier in the week. Guzy writes:

Death is not like in the movies. It isn't pretty and doesn't always come fast or easy, but rather like a slow withering. My role as a photojournalist was to document. Classie had respected that role and trusted me to follow her journey to life's greatest mystery. At a certain point, though most of the family wanted to honor Classie's wishes, two relatives requested new parameters: I could visit and write the story but no pictures. It wasn't too personal for Classie, it was too personal for them; and I had to respect that. For a visual storyteller, it was a difficult turn of events. I thought not even the greatest poet could find words to match the images of Classie that were never made.