Greif

An old friend lost his son last night......not like where is he, but, his son was tragically killed in a car accident with three other teenagers.....four lives gone in an instant. It happened in my home town in California far from where I am now...but it has left me breathless.

Michael was my neighbor from the 3rd grade thru my junior year in high school...we went from playing in the desert sand together to playing in the marching band together....our families looked out for one another. From the first day we moved in our lives were intertwined...we went to the same church...literally 30 steps from our front doors( well 30 steps if you climbed the block wall surrounding the church and didn't walk around). We walked to school together, shared dinners together, walked to the mailbox together, road our ATC, played in the sand piles, swam in our pool, played house....played wedding....played farmer, watched the pig get slaughtered...you get it, bikes, toys, hideouts..beaches...camping...we had an amazing time together.

I have so many wonderful memories of the family next door, Don, Doris, Mike, Ann, Kevin and of course Grandma Jean...Don was a scuba diver...we would go to the beach and he would dive for clams and we would make clam chowder right there on the beach....Doris was a nurse, I remember one night in particular when my sister Melissa was burned by Boiling water, my parents weren't home, but Doris was....she came running right over and was such a source of comfort and support. She reassured me that I did the right thing and that because of my quick reaction Melissa would probably not scar to badly, I also remember the night we had an enormous party that got way out of control....after the police left, she did not judge, she just grabbed a trach bag and helped us clean up....and Michael...always the groom for our pretend weddings....with his cute freckles and sweet smile, his gentle spirit....and he always beat me when we raced our bikes down our long dirt road. but he never boasted, just silently road back right along side me, quitely confident in his win...then there was Ann, the sweet girl, just followed along doing whatever we asked of her...we were after all the cool older neighbor girls, as we got older we had make-up and curling irons and all those things little girls love...and Kevin..he would come over and play with us, the little Dennis the Menace....always lurking around the corner, ready at any moment to tattle on even the slightest rule broken, they rode to far, they played in the garden, they didn't wait for me....but cute...boy was he a cutie, we could forgive him anything....Then there was Nana Jean....boy was she ever wonderful, always ready to play Uno or make popcorn...she always seemed to know where we were and what we were up to...and let us have fun anyway....We were neighbors,friends...we were like family...

That is why my heart is aching for Michael right now...I know it has been years since we have seen each other but he has a permanent place in my heart, in my memories....I never had to see him parent to know that he is a great father, I never had to meet his children to know that they must be wonderful as they are a part of him...I don't have to be near him to know that as dramatically as his life changed the day Rylan came in to it, it will change because he is gone...I will pray for Michael and his family today...pray that they find comfort in knowing that Rylan is sitting at the feet of Jesus, resting in his arms, drinking from his cup , feeling his heart beat, melting in his peace, relaxing in the overwhelming beauty that we all could only hope to find...

So I write this today because I have a friend who is hurting and through the years and over the miles I can feel his pain....and my heart aches for him and with him....and I can only hope that one day he will lay down at the end of the day and realize that it hurt a little less today...but the memory's stay strong....I Love you Michael J...my heart is with you today....and I look forward to meeting your Precious Rylan when God calls me home....