3 Years Ago Today

I have been struggling all day with what to post here tonight, but I knew I couldn't let this day pass without acknowledging one of the most amazing people I was ever blessed to know. Three years ago today Richard lost his battle with cancer. Richard was just another one of my brother's college friends, and you know how that goes when you are the 'little sister'...But Richard was different, he went out of his way to be everyones friend, not just your acquaintance. I have so many special memories of him, like the time he forced me to try home-made strawberry ice cream (this was my pre-eating strawberry phase) and when he stopped by the store with the dogs in the crate one very hot summer day. One of my favorite was the night he and some of the other guys flew back in from Italy and stopped at the house to visit on the way home. I came out of my 'cave' where I spent countless hours doing homework to see these country boys who were now considered 'cultured'. "How dare you go to Italy without me and leave me here to teach these little youngans' "...That was my first remark to them. Richard jumped off the couch and gave me the biggest hug, I can almost still feel it. Some of the memories are so silly when I sit back and think about it and some of them are priceless...but none of them do I take for granted. I can tell you the last time I saw him before he found out he was sick, and the last time I saw him before he passed away and the exact place I was sitting in my living room when I got the phone call from my brother. It was so nerve racking going into his hospital room and not knowing what he would look like or what to talk about. It seemed like things went so fast once he got the news about his cancer. Who knew what would result from a few really bad headaches.

Richard makes me think about my previous post, and how there is truly a season for everything under Heaven. It is a shame, for those of us left behind, that Richard's season was shorter than we would have liked for it to have been, but what a blessing it must be to be sitting at the feet of God today! Words cannot express to you what kind of person Richard was and the effect he still has today on those who were blessed enough to know him.