This Mom’s Obituary For Her Husband Will Make You Cry With Laughter And Pain – All At The Same Time

Crystal Sauser faced an unenviable task when her husband Eric passed away in February 2021 – she had to write his obituary. But instead of submitting a standard tribute, she went down a very different path. Yes, Crystal produced a humorous message about her hubby that’s since gone viral, making people cry with laughter and sadness across the world. Get your tissues ready!

Prior to the tragic loss, the Sausers were just like any other family in the state of Nebraska. Eric and Crystal had been husband and wife for more than a decade, in which time they’d welcomed three kids into the world. Their names are Amelia, Violet and Benjamin, who are aged between 11 and five.

Sounds like the couple had their hands full, right? Parents in similar positions are likely to agree! But Eric still managed to balance his job as a dad with his responsibilities outside the house. Crystal’s partner worked in the dentistry sector as a technician.

Yet while Eric worked to improve people’s smiles at his job, there wasn’t much smiling when he got sick back in 2019. Tragically, the dad-of-three lost his personal battle close to two years later, leaving his loved ones behind at the age of 43. Mind you, as we’ve already mentioned, Crystal refused to let sadness consume her when writing up his obituary.

That takes a lot of inner strength, wouldn’t you agree? We can’t imagine how difficult it must’ve been for Crystal during that period. Anyway, you’re probably wondering what Eric was dealing with in those last two years of his life. What took him away from his young family in the end?

Well, Eric was beginning to notice some troubling symptoms in the early part of 2019. Yes, Crystal’s hubby was suffering with sweats as the evenings drew in. A bigger red flag arose when he took one of the kids up to their bedroom but then struggled to catch his breath afterwards.

Unsurprisingly, those worrying signs soon prompted Eric to visit a doctor, yet no one could’ve predicted what happened next. Following some tests, the dental technician found out that he had cancer that spring – specifically leukemia. It was a diagnosis that changed the Sausers’ lives forever, catching them all off guard.

Eric’s symptoms were some of the most common signs of leukemia, a disease that attacks your white blood cells and bone marrow. As per the Mayo Clinic’s website, a few of the other signals include unexpected weight loss, frequent nosebleeds and constant bruising. You might struggle to stay warm as well.

So how did Eric take the news? Remarkably well, actually. To explain more, Crystal spoke to the Good Morning America website in March 2021. According to the mom, his attitude shaped their entire outlook up until he passed away from the disease. Eric showed no fear.

“We were shocked [by the diagnosis],” Crystal recalled. “Eric said nothing but, ‘Oh well, it’s fine. We are going to just deal with this.’ So, that was our mantra and that’s what we followed. He and I are absolutely complete opposites, but the way we managed this was as a team.”

“We went in with open eyes and said, ‘We are going to do what we have to do to fight this,’” Crystal continued. And it’s fair to say that they were true to their word. Yes, Eric was willing to try out many different options in his bid to beat his leukemia over those first 12 months.

From “experimental” treatment to a transplant procedure, Eric fought the disease with everything he had. Sadly, though, the dad-of-three suffered a significant setback in the spring of 2020. After Crystal’s husband seemingly saw off his cancer, it cropped back up again, which left the family devastated.

But how did Eric react this time around? Did he maintain the positivity from the year before? Crystal looked back on that moment during her chat with Good Morning America, giving some more insight into her husband’s mindset. The news appeared to hit him much harder than the initial diagnosis.

“At that point Eric said, ‘Enough is enough. I’m putting you guys through way too much.’ But through the entire journey, Eric was such an amazing guy,” Crystal explained. “He always had a smile on his face. He was more worried what was going on with everyone else than him.”

“I’m sad because I have a broken heart,” Crystal added. “But I’m not sad because we didn’t win our journey. Eric never wanted pity.” Despite those bittersweet feelings, though, the mom-of-three tried her best to keep Eric’s spirits up throughout the illness. And it further highlighted their dynamic as a couple.

Crystal reflected on one of these moments while talking to CNN in March 2021. She remembered a day when Eric was wheelchair-bound and they were moving around an airport. “I would say, ‘You’re so sexy,’” the Nebraska resident recalled. “He would always be like, ‘That is so annoying.’”

Yet Crystal meant every word – and she was desperate for Eric to be aware of that, in spite of his deteriorating condition. As the traditional marriage vows say, “For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part.” She didn’t forget that!

“At the end of the day, my commitment was that I would never stop loving [Eric],” Crystal told CNN. “He needed to know it wasn’t materialistic, that I thought he was dead sexy for him, for who he was.” She even asked staff at Eric’s hospice to say his passing was a result of being “dead sexy” after he died in February 2021.

Yes, humor can help a lot of us through hard times, but Crystal’s resolve was something else. Talk about strength! And her emotions were tested once again when sorting out Eric’s obituary. Unsurprisingly, as a 39-year-old, she had no idea who was responsible for creating it.

Anyway, despite Crystal’s initial confusion, she eventually decided to look over some writing templates at a funeral home. Surely there was something she could latch on to, right? Even if it was just to be used as a base. Well, Eric’s wife wasn’t too impressed by what she saw. Nothing stood out.

In Crystal’s mind, those templates couldn’t convey what she wanted to say about her dearly departed hubby. So the mom went on to make a big decision. As the old phrase goes, “If you want something done right, do it yourself.” Yep, she drew up Eric’s obituary on her own.

But not even Crystal could’ve predicted what happened after she submitted the piece for publication. It quickly took social media by storm, with users around the world shedding tears of laughter and sadness thanks to her heartfelt words. Ready to hear it yourself? Grab some tissues then! You’ll probably need them.

The tone of the obituary was set right away, as Crystal described Eric as “Super Dad, Easy [and] just a rockin’ dude from Omaha” in the opening. She then wrote, “His departure was just in time for him to make his spiritual appearance at every Red Sox spring game.” That’s quite a start.

After that, Eric’s obit appeared to follow a more traditional outline, with Crystal listing off those he’d left behind. They included his mom and dad Paula and Ronnie, as well as his sister Jessica. And of course, Benjamin, Violet and Amelia were in there too alongside their mother. Yet the tone soon changed again.

Crystal wrote, “In addition to his immediate family, Eric leaves behind an incredible extended family and many, many friends. He is preceded in death by billions, including his dog Harvey who most of us loved to hate. We are confident they are joyfully reconnecting right now.” That’s a nice visual, right?

From there, Crystal noted, “If you knew Eric, you knew you were loved, and there is a good chance he told you that – probably sober, but maybe not.” We get the feeling that nights out with him would’ve been a blast! Everyone could do with a friend like that in their lives.

Following that passage, Crystal then began to reel off Eric’s favorite things. To little surprise, she started by saying she was at the top, dubbing herself as “his smoking hot wife.” The children came next, with his relatives close behind. Makes sense, wouldn’t you agree? Mind you, the dad’s love of sports was well represented, too.

As Crystal mentioned earlier, Eric was a big Boston Red Sox fan – but they weren’t the only team he followed. Yes, her husband also adored the Nebraska Huskers, the Kansas City Chiefs and Liverpool from England’s Premier League. It’s safe to say that he wasn’t just attached to one particular sport.

Anyway, Crystal went on to reveal that Eric was a very active guy outside the house, noting that he enjoyed fishing, hunting and hiking. Plus, he had a thing for QT iced tea, Chevys and Adidas footwear, too. What didn’t this man love?! Well, just like the rest of us, the dental technician had his pet-hates.

“Eric hated sad stories, beets, romantic comedies, a snow packed driveway and turning off the garage light,” Crystal revealed. “That’s it. Eric was content with most everything else.” Then, she referred back to her humorous conversation with the hospice nurses after her husband passed. Some jokes are just worth telling again, right?

“We are not positive, but we think the cause of death was either leukemia or more likely being ‘dead sexy,’” Crystal continued. “Eric, we’ve always loved you and miss you already.” That didn’t mark the end of the obit, though. Instead, the Nebraska resident switched her focus to the memorial service.

After confirming the time and date, Crystal then had one last thing to say. “Admission is free to all who attend this once in a lifetime show for the greatest man on earth,” the mom wrote. “Following the service, the family requests jamming out to Ozzy Osbourne and raising a cold beer (preferably Busch Light) in celebration of Eric’s life.”

“In lieu of flowers, please pray that the Huskers have a winning season, or send a donation to The Leukemia And Lymphoma Society in Eric’s name,” Crystal added. “He would appreciate either or both.” On that note, the hilarious and sad obituary came to a close. Dried your eyes yet?

As we highlighted earlier, the response to Eric’s obit was truly heartwarming. Once it was published in the Omaha World-Herald newspaper, a staff member there named Bob Glissmann shared a photo of the piece on Twitter. That particular tweet earned close to 4,000 likes and hundreds of retweets.

The tweet generated plenty of comments as well, with many people hailing Crystal’s work. An appreciative Twitter user wrote, “I have recently been thinking that most obits don’t tell us anything about the person. This one does so, beautifully.” Another concurred, simply asking, “How do you top that?” We’d also like to know!

How did Crystal react to this outpouring of online support, though? Well, during her conversation with Good Morning America, she highlighted a few of her favorite comments from social media. They clearly meant a lot to her. The mom said, “Some of the coolest things [I read] are, ‘This guy’s an inspiration’ and ‘I hope this changes the way obituaries are written today.’”

On top of that, Crystal jokingly revealed that Eric would be “embarrassed” with some of the content in the obit. Specifically the “dead sexy” line. Then again, his wife noted that the overall reaction would’ve warmed his heart. Given what we’ve learned about the guy, that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

Anyway, Crystal also spoke about the writing process while talking to CNN. According to her, the obituary came together quite quickly thanks to the bond she shared with Eric. “Him and I were partners,” the parent beamed. “We were magical.” We don’t know about you, but we need another tissue!

Crystal’s thoughts didn’t end at that stage, though. You see, Eric’s wife wanted to clarify why this obit meant so much to her. She also needed to sum up the importance of the positive response to it on social media. In her mind, that kind of reaction was a real added bonus.

“For me, to be able to put [Eric] out into the world again was so special,” Crystal concluded. “It was a chance to share who he was, so people knew he wasn’t just some sick dude. If we change the way people love for even 15 minutes, we’re so pleased to be able to share our story and our love with the world.”