A woman from Massachusetts aimed to leave the world with a smile.
Linda Murphy’s witty and touching obituary gained widespread attention after she passed away at the age of 60 following a courageous three-year battle with Bulbar ALS.
“So, if you’re reading this obituary, I’ve officially kicked the bucket. Wow, it really happened… I died from FOMO due to complications of Bulbar ALS,” Murphy penned. “My name is Linda Brossi Murphy, and I was only 60 years old when I passed on… much too young! As they say, I ‘slipped away peacefully while surrounded by loved ones.’ My beautiful family and a couple of my closest friends hugged and comforted me until my last breath!”
Residing in Framingham, Massachusetts, Murphy cherished her husband of 42 years, David, and called her children the “absolute best part of my life” as she reflected on her final moments.
Despite losing her ability to speak over the past year, Murphy penned her own obituary in April before losing most movement in her hands, as reported by CBS Boston.
“My silly Bulbar ALS led me to a point where I couldn’t talk anymore,” Murphy expressed. “Not being able to speak means I can’t say ‘I love you!’ It means I can’t call my Mr. BoJangles for a snack or place an order at the Dunkin’ drive-through.”
She continued, “It’s pretty rough to sit at the table while everyone enjoys juicy burgers fresh off the grill, mountains of Chinese food, a generous serving of pasta Alfredo, or Chipotle—and I’m sitting here making do with my bowl of puréed baby mush!”
After briefly working as a nursing home administrator, Murphy joined the family real estate business in 2000, where she thrived even after overcoming breast cancer and was later diagnosed with ALS in 2022.
She confessed that she tried to keep her hardships under wraps.
“Living became such an overwhelming load every single day,” Murphy admitted. “I always made my best effort to prevent anyone from knowing the ‘behind-the-scenes’ of my daily struggles with ALS. My husband and I just soldiered through each day, trying to present our best selves to the outside world.”
Murphy chose her casket, selected music for her funeral, and even planned a dance party to celebrate her life, as reported by CBS Boston.
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Murphy even joked that one of her “superpowers” was being able to “drink as much as I wanted” without suffering from a hangover.
“The real mystery is why I didn’t expire from liver failure,” Murphy humorously added.
She generously donated her brain and spinal cord for ALS research while asking her loved ones to commemorate her in a special way.
Murphy requested that only “kind, loving individuals” attend her wake.
“If you were unpleasant or unkind to me, my family, or friends during my life… please do everyone a favor and STAY AWAY,” she stated. “We don’t want your negative drama and energy.”
Murphy’s last wish for the world was to “show kindness to everyone.”
“Please show kindness to everyone: the telemarketer, the grocery clerk, the Dunkin’ staff, the tailgater, your family, and your friends,” Murphy implored. “Speak kindly and positively. Is there any reason to be negative? I don’t think so…”
“So, to my earthly life, I bid farewell. It was a wild ride while it lasted. We truly had a blast!”
Murphy’s daughter, Justine Hastings, shared that her mom always approached life a little differently, recalling when she walked into Massachusetts General Hospital in 2022 and challenged the doctors to prove her wrong about her diagnosis.
“She said, ‘I have ALS. Prove me wrong,’” Hastings recalled. “And they conducted every possible test, and she diagnosed herself. That was the most ‘my mom’ thing ever.”
Hastings expressed that she was touched by the positive responses to her mom’s viral obituary.
“She was the life of the party. She was the party itself,” her daughter reflected. “One of my favorite comments was, ‘I just read this, and I wish I could have shared a glass of wine with her.’”
