At the age where I'm losing many friends...

[ultrarunner]

My good friends, the ones I have written about that would give you the shirt off their back if you asked or open their shop and say take anything you need are passing away fast...

I'm in my 50's and my friends have always been older to much older... guys that know how to get things done and never afraid to tackle projects such as building a home or restoring a car or tractor and the only ones I know around here with shops...

That generation is fast fading... for the most part they were active and healthy nearly to the end which is a blessing... but when the end came it was months and not years... cancer of various forms.

I never could really understand what my grandfather meant when he said he outlived all his friends... the ones with shared experiences and contemporaries... the ones you could count on in a pinch... but sadly I am starting to understand.

Something about having friends that were always glad to see you no matter when and the door was always open.

All I can say is I was fortunate to have known them, thank them for their encouragement and can never repay the kindness shown...

Lee passed away today at 80 but up to 3 months ago you would have thought he was a spy 60 year old... full days work, early to rise and never done with improvements around his place.

Lee's mom is 100 and still living in her home and her only child Lee was the world to her having lost her husband when Lee was just out of High School...

Lee and I had today on the calendar to attend a trade show that he never missed and we both were really looking forward to spending the day together... just shows the best made plans are nothing more than plans...

 

[CalG]

I was talking with my wife this evening about buying a new suit for the upcoming wedding of the neighbor's son. We both reflected on the need fancy duds for funerals and the like...

With birth, the end is assured.

 

[void777]

ultrarunner
Reading your kind words proves you are a true friend you humble me with your words that touched my heart. Truly sorry for your loss.

 

[CalG]

Plans are the anticipation

of LIFE!

 

[Wagtail]

A quote I read recently (unknown by whom)...

"The body is an envelope with a message inside... when it is time, discard the envelope but remember the message."

I hope that you went to the trade show.

 

[oosik]

Ultrarunner - Lee was blessed, he had a true friend that he could count on. Go with good memories ...............

 

[blackdog2086]

Your message is very true and also, for me, timely. I just attended the funeral of a close friend and former co-worker this week. He was 53 (younger than me) and I trained him on the job way back when he first joined the police department. He was definitely one of the good ones. I expect to attend funerals of of guys my age and up, but when they're younger it seems to hit me a bit harder. Guess cancer doesn't discriminate by age.

 

[riptides]

True friends are always welcome and cherished. I too have the blessing to be around people of many generations that give it their all. Some have made the ultimate sacrifice, some have just met times end, some have gone way too soon. I still engaged in the things they did in their lives, it is a humble honor and a privilege having known them, and also calling them a friend was just the beginning.

I hope your kind thoughts and memories bring back the smiles you probably shared.

 

[George2615]

Ultrarunner,
I'm in my mid 60's and my life has been very similar to yours. Similar occupation and 90% of my friends are older than myself. They have also been passing on and I'm down to just a handful left so i know the feeling you are going through. Your words repeat exactly what I was saying to my wife just a few weeks ago when I lost another one of my friends. I'm am truly sorry for your loss. Cherish your memories.

 

[EddieWalker]

Sorry for your loss.

I've been amazed at home many of my High School classmates that have passed away. There is a memorial group of FB for my high school, and guessing from the kids in my class, and the classes above and behind me, it's somewhere between 50 and 100 that are now gone.