There are not many guarantees in this life, but we can all rest assured that we will not live forever. Death is inevitable, but to loose a loved one is the most painful thing we have to endure in this life.
On the 14th of March, back in 2001, my then fourteen year old brother was found dead in a friends swimming pool. It was a phone call that would leave any sister speechless, but to have seen him only hours before so much alive, with so much going for him. He was taken away for ever, and 7 years later it still breaks my heart.
I am left to wonder who he would be today, I imagine his girlfriends, would he be married, and maybe even a child or two by now, maybe I would be an Aunt. I wonder where he would work, I wonder how tall he would have been, and what he would have looked like today.
I recall the time like it was yesterday, the phone calls, the trip to the hospital, and the look on my fathers face after he found out that his only son had just passed away. I remember the agony we all went through, picking out his clothes for his upcoming viewing, and planning the funeral for the youngest child. I remember attending the casket, and looking in on him, he was wearing make up, and they did his hair. It looked nothing like him. Their attempt to cover up his lifeless face, was not good enough to hide the blue from his lips. A boy who was once so lively was so still, and so quiet.
I have yet to say my final good-byes to my only brother, the tears still fall, and my heart still aches, for the young man who could make me laugh, who would stand up for himself, and for what he believed in. Who was always there for me when I need him. My brother, and My friend. God bless your soul. Amen.
Robert M. Leeman
May 6th 1986 - March 14th 2001
