I have had four friends die this year. All four of these people were under 30 years old, and very lively spirits. I just don't understand how God can take such beautiful people home with him when they have such a life to live here on earth.
The first death was Howard. He fell and hit his head one weekend while goofing around. Less than a week later he was in a coma, and then passed away. I had not seen or spoken to Howard in years. I knew him from my association with the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity at UNLV. He was such a fun guy, I asked him to be my date to my sorority's Spring Semi-Formal my freshman year. We had a great time, and I remember he always had a smile on his face. One of the worst nights (booze-wise) of my life, I always blamed on Howard and his insistence to swing dance with me. It had nothing to do with the copious amounts of alcohol I mixed that night, I blamed the puking (all over my new Lil Bro's shoes) on the swing dancing. That is how I will remember Howard, as the big teddy bear who insisted on swing dancing with a drunken Lonnie.
The second death came less than a month after my 10 Year High School Reunion. I met Myra as a freshman in high school. We were in the same gym class. She transfered to Belen from St. Mary's with a handful of other students, including a person a could not stand in elementary school. Turned out that person, Rachel, would become one of my best friends from 9th-11th grade. Rachel and Myra were good friends, and that is how I got to know her. She was this little imp of a thing, but had a personality of a two-hundred pound 6 foot rock star. She was just the kind of person you couldn't help but like. We were in the same Math and Science Club for most of high school. After high school we lost touch, but through technology and Myspace we were able to get back in touch. She was even very helpful in getting her boss to photgraph the reunion with no charge to the class. She was killed in a head on collision in August. I will always remember her spirit and larger than life outlook on things.
The third death I found about a while after the fact. I met Sarah through Monique. They worked together at the Wynn, and when Monique came back from China, they invited me into their Wednesday night Happy Hour, while I was living in Vegas. She was so fun and lively. At the time I did not realize she was battling a real demon. After moving back to Georgia, we kept in touch through Myspace and Facebook. I was so happy to hear she had sobered up, and that she thought she had found true love. I enjoyed looking at her pictures of her trips, and she was usually one of the first people to comment on my pictures from trips. Monique found out from a mutual friend that she had been shot and killed in her home, by her fiance, in September. She came from a prominent family in Baltimore, and reading the notes on her Facebook after her death made me realize I truly didn't know just how special she was.
The most recent was a childhood friend. Virginia and I were in the same class in 5th grade, maybe even before that. We spent a lot of weekend at another friend Janeice's house. Playing with New Kid on the Block dolls and watching the original Saturday morning Saved By The Bell. We were friends through Middle School and I remember being happy when we discovered we were in the same World History class as high school freshman. I really can't remember the last time I saw or spoke to Virginia, it was probably after her brother died, when we were junior's. Her body was found this summer on the West Mesa in Albuquerque, and I guess recently identified. I will remember those days of complete innocence playing dolls and watching TV. They really were the good ol' days.
For a person that was not supposed to live to be 24, much less 29, it kills me that these people were taken in their prime. I know that I am here for a reason, I guess I really need to start living life to the fullest, and appreciating every day that God has given me.
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