Paul was born on the 12th of January, 1973, in the town of Vereeniging in South Africa. He passed on in Illinois at the age of 49 years, on the 12th of January, 2022.
He married Louise Muller in 1999 and 2 children, Gabriella and Matthew were born from the marriage.
Paul qualified as an engineer and was passionate about the wider field of engineering and creative thinking. He continuously busied himself with the development of new and efficient solutions, in both his work and everyday life, always thinking and experimenting how improvements can be made.
The world changes from year to year and our lives change from day to day, from hour to hour.
When this year started, we would never have thought that Paul would so soon be exiting this world. Little did we know that, on the morning of the 12th January 2022, our lives would change forever.
No farewell words were spoken, there was no time to say goodbye, Paul was gone before we knew it, only he will know why. He decided to step away from this world, it was his decision when, how and why he wanted to exit this life. He departed on his 49th birthday. A birthday is usually a day of celebration; however, Paul has always done things differently. In this instance, he chose that his earthly life would expire on this day.
Paul deeply yearned for a space where there would be complete peace, calmness and freedom; a space where there is no fear, anxiety, emotional darkness or any other earthly concerns. This is the space that he chose and which we refer to as ‘Up Above’. It must have offered him the promise to again become content, glow in the Light and to be in the company of other spirits that departed ahead of him, in particular the spirit of our beloved daughter and sister, Gabi, who departed to this space 6 years ago, almost to the day. We strongly believe that they are now together.
We do not want to dwell on how Paul died but focus on how he lived. Matthew and I will remember him for the special times we had, his humor, his singlemindedness, the family times we spent together, the warmth that simmered up from under his somewhat aloof armor, his ability to look at all aspects of life from a different and unique angle, his boyish fun side, his friendship, all the hardships and challenges which we experienced over the years and his brutal honesty, in particular being honest with himself. Above all, we remember his profound ability to love.
All the above characteristics made Paul who he was, my Paul and Matthew’s Dad. He walked to the beat of his own drum. We will cherish the special memories of him in the deepest of our hearts. The void in our hearts is where we will hold and cherish him.
Private family cremation will be accorded and a Celebration of Life will held at a later date.
A few words to Paul:
Our hearts are aching with sadness and tears are flowing. What it meant to have you as a husband and Dad, no-one will know. Despite our grief, we know that this is what you wanted to do, where you wanted to be, we accept that you could not stay. Your purpose was fulfilled.
We know that you would not want us to grieve unduly and rather celebrate the time and the fullness which we shared and embraced.
For us, life goes on and still has much in store; we will endeavor to face the challenges ahead with calmness, inner strength and resilience.
The opening line of M Scott Peck’s book: ‘The Road Less Travelled’, is: ‘Life is Difficult’. You will understand that, at this moment in time, it surely is. Matthew and I are now experiencing how difficult life can be albeit with the knowledge that there is a time for grief, a time for sadness, a time for tears, a time for anger, a time for acceptance and then a time to transcend, to stand up and walk forward and then to laugh again. This is what you would want us to do and what we will do.
Our family chain is broken, but only temporarily, as we all have to, at some later point in our lives, heed the call to exit life as we know it. This is life’s formula. When that happens, our family chain will be linked up again.
Fly high my dearest Paul and Dad, you are where you wanted to be.
Our earthly love
Louise and Matthew
To share a memory or send a condolence gift, please visit the Official Obituary of Paul B. Harrison hosted by Rux Funeral Homes.
Paul was born on the 12th of January, 1973, in the town of Vereeniging in South Africa. He passed on in Illinois at the age of 49 years, on the 12th of January, 2022.
He married Louise Muller in 1999 and 2 children, Gabriella and Matthew were born from the marriage.
Paul qualified as an engineer and was passionate about the wider field of engineering and creative thinking. He continuously busied himself with the development of new and efficient solutions, in both his work and everyday life, always thinking and experimenting how improvements can be made.
The world changes from year to year and our lives change from day to day, from hour to hour.
When this year started, we would never have thought that Paul would so soon be exiting this world. Little did we know that, on the morning of the 12th January 2022, our lives would change forever.
No farewell words were spoken, there was no time to say goodbye, Paul was gone before we knew it, only he will know why. He decided to step away from this world, it was his decision when, how and why he wanted to exit this life. He departed on his 49th birthday. A birthday is usually a day of celebration; however, Paul has always done things differently. In this instance, he chose that his earthly life would expire on this day.
Paul deeply yearned for a space where there would be complete peace, calmness and freedom; a space where there is no fear, anxiety, emotional darkness or any other earthly concerns. This is the space that he chose and which we refer to as ‘Up Above’. It must have offered him the promise to again become content, glow in the Light and to be in the company of other spirits that departed ahead of him, in particular the spirit of our beloved daughter and sister, Gabi, who departed to this space 6 years ago, almost to the day. We strongly believe that they are now together.
We do not want to dwell on how Paul died but focus on how he lived. Matthew and I will remember him for the special times we had, his humor, his singlemindedness, the family times we spent together, the warmth that simmered up from under his somewhat aloof armor, his ability to look at all aspects of life from a different and unique angle, his boyish fun side, his friendship, all the hardships and challenges which we experienced over the years and his brutal honesty, in particular being honest with himself. Above all, we remember his profound ability to love.
All the above characteristics made Paul who he was, my Paul and Matthew’s Dad. He walked to the beat of his own drum. We will cherish the special memories of him in the deepest of our hearts. The void in our hearts is where we will hold and cherish him.
Private family cremation will be accorded and a Celebration of Life will held at a later date.
A few words to Paul:
Our hearts are aching with sadness and tears are flowing. What it meant to have you as a husband and Dad, no-one will know. Despite our grief, we know that this is what you wanted to do, where you wanted to be, we accept that you could not stay. Your purpose was fulfilled.
We know that you would not want us to grieve unduly and rather celebrate the time and the fullness which we shared and embraced.
For us, life goes on and still has much in store; we will endeavor to face the challenges ahead with calmness, inner strength and resilience.
The opening line of M Scott Peck’s book: ‘The Road Less Travelled’, is: ‘Life is Difficult’. You will understand that, at this moment in time, it surely is. Matthew and I are now experiencing how difficult life can be albeit with the knowledge that there is a time for grief, a time for sadness, a time for tears, a time for anger, a time for acceptance and then a time to transcend, to stand up and walk forward and then to laugh again. This is what you would want us to do and what we will do.
Our family chain is broken, but only temporarily, as we all have to, at some later point in our lives, heed the call to exit life as we know it. This is life’s formula. When that happens, our family chain will be linked up again.
Fly high my dearest Paul and Dad, you are where you wanted to be.
Our earthly love
Louise and Matthew
To share a memory or send a condolence gift, please visit the Official Obituary of Paul B. Harrison hosted by Rux Funeral Homes.
