This past weekend, I attended a “celebration of life” memorial for one of my best high school friends. Seeing the pictures and listening to his family reminisce made me sad I’d lost contact, but grateful we’d recently reconnected on Facebook.¹No fireworks at the Olympics? Boo!

I have one story about Ken I must tell:

Suzi and I wed 26 years ago. We got presents from friends, classmates, friends of our parents, church members, etc. — lots of presents. Of all the presents, I remember only two,²Indeed, I do remember two presents: Ken’s and one other. As long as I don’t identify that other person, you can imagine the other remembered gift is yours. Yes, this past weekend I said I’d remembered only one, but with the retelling of this story, I remembered another. Lucky me. ;-) I’m sure Suzi remembers many more. Hug your family (and friends) — often. one of them being Ken’s. It was in a large box, large enough to fit a microwave oven, and it was heavy. Inside, we discovered 2,000 paper plates, 2 bottles of Martinelli’s, and a note from Ken:

“You’re married now. You have better things to do than dishes. Enjoy!”

We used those plates for years, remembering Ken each time he “did the dishes” for us.

Classic Ken. I will miss him.

• 1
  No fireworks at the Olympics? Boo!
• 2
  Indeed, I do remember two presents: Ken’s and one other. As long as I don’t identify that other person, you can imagine the other remembered gift is yours. Yes, this past weekend I said I’d remembered only one, but with the retelling of this story, I remembered another. Lucky me. ;-) I’m sure Suzi remembers many more. Hug your family (and friends) — often.