Tragedy is “a strange…”, (as Paul Harvey would say).

We seldom think about tragedy striking us. It’s usually something that happens to someone else. But I suppose we are all susceptible to anything that anyone else is susceptible to.

A few weeks ago my (ex) brother in law passed away. He was one of my favorite people. Because of a divorce he became a man separated from the connection we had before it. We used to kid around with each other; laugh at dumb stuff and just have a good time when we were together at some family event or something.

Bob was a good man. Life has a hard way of handing out unfairness but I suppose we have to play whatever instrument life hands us. There was a time when he was full of life and love; a time when we could laugh together, or talk about more serious stuff, like “who’s winning?”. I recall a time when Bob, Rick and I went out one evening and listened to a band somewhere and just cracked up at their antics. I recall Bob’s laugh like it was “yesterday”.

So what do you do with all those memories that seem to fade away with time? The more I try to recall them, the more evasive they appear to become. Faded memories are incomplete, yet nagging, trying to make us recall the specifics.

Recently I’ve been trying to recall more of them because there will no longer be any new ones. Bob passed away a few weeks ago, in the quiet of his home. No one was around. Several days passed by until friends went to check on him. Bob had been quietly dealing with some issues with cancer and diabetes. Apparently, perhaps, one of them got him.

Being nine years younger than me, it’s hard to comprehend that he has already reached the Pearly Gates while I’m still trying to reach retirement. But, as some say, “life’s not fair”. The Holy Scriptures talk about dying and the afterlife; that it will come “as a thief in the night”. In other words, you will never know the day and time…perhaps, only in the moment, will we be aware of what’s happening.

Things happened to Bob after his divorce, and the rest of his life had a few roadblocks and dead ends in it. He was just beginning to pull out of it all when the Death Angel showed up. I’m sure there was much more to it, but this is the way I see it.

All I know is that he will be sorely missed. He had many challenges in his life, but he also had many victories. That’s how I want to remember him…
...........for the victories!