One Year Ago....

So for awhile, nothing special has been really happening. Everything in my life is finally starting to settle and I'm getting used to corporate life and everything.



However, that's not what this post is about. This post will be one of the hardest things I've done, not because of any experience from here, but because of the nature of an event that happened on Oct. 23rd, 2006. The above picture is Me, My friends Josh, Brad, and Chris after a skydive last summer. I lost my friend Josh last October.

One of the best friends that I could ask for left and passed away one year ago on the date above. He involved in a landing accident while skydiving. He was a very experienced jumper (over 2000+ jumps) but one day, misread an advanced maneuver he was trying to do and hit the ground pretty hard. He ended up in the hospital during the month of September and was progressing and getting better. I was scheduled to fly out to see him, thanks to another good friend - Rob DeLeon - who bought the plane ticket for me. The flight was supposed to leave on Oct. 24th, right before the Compulsive Lyres were supposed to go to Chicago to sing.

Anyways, one day his condition started getting worse and he developed an infection where he started leaking spinal fluid. His condition from that point only worsened and his girlfriend and his parents knew that he did not want to live that way. (He would've been a vegetable for the rest of his life). So they decided to pull him off life support. Meanwhile back in Ann Arbor at Briarwood Mall, I was with the Lyres guys looking for new shirts and I got a phone call from Kristen. Now I had been in direct contact with her from the very day of his accident all through the recovery and even up to this point. However, the news I got was not something I wanted to hear. She told me that any minute now that his parents were going to pull him life support and Josh would slip away. He was slowly getting more sleepy and was already dying. I really hope no one ever feels what I felt at that moment. I pleaded asking them to wait one more day so i could get there, but they said that would be too late. So Kristen told me that she would hold the phone to his ear so I could say my goodbye to him.....

This was quite possibly the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life thus far. I tried to stay as positive as possible, saying things that would make him laugh and that I know would put a smile on his face. It took me about 10 minutes to say goodbye, but I did and hung out the phone. As I did, I walked back into the mall with a shocked look on my face, and just collapsed on the ground as the guys came rushing over to check on me. I didn't want to talk to anyone or see anyone. I just wanted to go home. I hung out with the realization that my friend had just died and that I would never see him again.

Now its over one year later and I'm out in Colorado. Some days I think about everything he taught me and all the fun we had and other days, its hard not to cry. I know he's watching over me though, and one day I'll get to jump with him again. I have kept in contact with his mom and other family members and his girlfriend too....i think they appreciate me talking to them, and vice versa.

I'll close with this....whoever you know and as cliche as this will sound, everyone you care about, whether its friends, family, whoever...go and spend time with them and tell them you love them. You never know when the last time you hang out or go visit, really will be the last time. Josh and I hung out all summer and he was going to help me start training for my different skydiving instructor certifications. I am still going after those, but I just have to do it without his help.

Seriously, tell those you care about, how much you care. Realize how strong your friendships are with people.

I never want anyone to ever be in the situation that I or Josh's family was in with anyone.

Take care everyone....