Eulogy

Imagine it's 2500 B.C. The whole tribe has gathered to celebrate the life of your great-grandfather, who was also the beloved leader of the tribe for many years. As a way of celebrating, you've been chosen to give a eulogy. What is a eulogy? It's a chronological record of the uniqueness of the one who has passed - what made that person stand out from the rest. It's a history, a chronicle of where the person came from and what made them so great. And embedded in the storyline of this tribe is the belief that spurring on the evolution of mankind was a Great Power that not only set the universe in motion, but took care of much smaller things - namely, human beings.

This is Adam's family tree:

Many, many years ago, when the Great Power established the natural processes that led to the evolution of mankind, the first human being took a step on land. And that human being, just like the living creatures before him, had qualities that showed glimpses of the creative work of the Great Power. And not long after the first human walked the earth, a different kind of human evolved - what we call a female. And they were both wired with qualities of the divine. The first man was named Adam, the first woman Eve.

Back then, the earth was much safer than it is today. You didn't have warring factions looking to gain ground all the time at the expense of other tribes. You didn't have plagues wiping whole tribes off the face of the earth. And so, people lived much longer. Adam lived to be 130, and had a son named Seth. Seth displayed those same qualities of the divine that Adam did, and that was to be the case with all of Adam's children - sons and daughters. After Adam and Eve had Seth, Adam lived another 800 years, totaling 930! Unfortunately, no one knows how long the first woman lived because whoever decided to start recording this stuff was obviously a male.

Seth lived 105 years, married, and they had a son named Enosh. Then Seth lived another 807 years and along the way had many other sons and daughters. In all, Seth lived 912 years.

By the age of 90, Enosh and his wife had a kid named Kenan. Then Enosh lived another 815 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all, Enosh lived 905 years.

By the age of 70, Kenan and his wife had a kid named Mahalalel. Then Kenan lived another 840 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all, Kenan lived 910 years.

By the age of 65, Mahalalel and his wife had a kid named Jared. Then Mahalalel lived another 830 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all, Mahalalel lived 895 years.

By the age of 162, Jared and his wife had a kid named Enoch. Then Jared lived another 800 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all, Jared lived 962 years.

By the age of 65, Enoch and his wife had a kid named Methuselah. Legend has it that Enoch was the first man since Adam to communicate with the Great Power, and he did that for 300 years after he had Methuselah. Him and his wife also had many other sons and daughters. In all, Enoch lived 365 years, and story has it that he didn't live as long as the generations before because the Great Power decided to take him from the earth and use him to do things that only the Great Power could do.

By the age of 187, Mehuselah and his wife had a kid named Lamech. Then Methuselah lived another 782 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all, Methuselah lived 969 years.

By the age of 182, Lamech and his wife had a kid named Noah. And Lamech decided to bless Noah with the following words: "You will give your people rest from their work and from the bone-breaking labor it takes to cultivate this cursed ground." Then Lamech lived another 595 years and had many other sons and daughters. In all Lamech lived 777 years.

By the age of 500, Noah and his wife had three sons - Shem, Ham, and Japheth.