Today we lost one of the good ones…

My Dad’s best friend in the whole widest world died today.  My Dad lost his Dad at a very early age and this man served as a father figure to him as well as a best friend.  He was one of the good ones.  I will not use his name for the sake of the family’s privacy but his life deserves to be shared with as many as will listen.  
 

I have known this man since I was a little girl and I have never seen a mean thing come from him.  He was kind.  He had respect for all walks of life.  He was hilarious!  I visited him last week in his hospice bed and all he did the entire time was laugh and joke.  I told him that it was so good to see him.  His response:  It is good to be seen, let me tell you!  And laughter ensued.  It is very fitting that he died on April Fools Day, he would have really liked that. 

You know how when people die tragically, we suddenly forget all of their flaws and only speak their praises?  If this were true then there would be no bad people in the world.  I am known for my honesty.  I am the one that says, yeah it sucks that she is dead but seriously are we forgetting what a pain she was?   

This is one of the few times in my life where I can honestly say we lost one of the good ones.  I am sure he wasn’t perfect because no one is but he was about as close as it gets in my opinion.  I know very strongly that I am not the only one that feels this way. 

When I think of him, my first thought will always be laughter.  He was special, always had the right thing to say in a bad situation, life of the party, loved to dance,  loved good food, just a good man.  My heart breaks for his wife and my father.  There is now a void in their lives that will never be filled again because a man like this is irreplaceable.  So many people loved this man and are affected by this loss.  

We have been preparing for this day for about a year now. We knew it was coming and watched him get more and more sick.  Somehow knowing it was coming doesn’t make it any easier now that it is here.  He is in no more pain.  For that I am thankful.  And yet I feel so fortunate to have known a man like this.  I strive daily to be a better person and he has always been one of my muses in achieving this never ending goal.   

He wanted everyone to have a party after he died (told you life of the party).  That is who he was…a good man that loved life and loved to celebrate it.  Hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight.  Tomorrow, judge a little less and laugh a little more.  Have a little more patience and be a little more kind.  Do this in honor of this sweet, sweet man that the world lost today because today we lost one of the good ones.