A Personal Tribute.....

I just found out that a very close friend of our family, Mr. Weber, passed away in his sleep last night in the hospital. Although he did not suffer in death, I felt a great loss in my life since he played such a quiet yet pivotal role in it.
Mr. Weber was not only our neighbor since 1979, he and his wife would tolerate my visits as a lonely child and let me sit there and eat M&M's to my heart's content while quietly listening to my ramblings.
I grew close to their grandchildren, Ranell and Randy, who would often come to visit from Illinois where Mr. Weber was originally from.
His wife passed away quite a long time ago, although I remember her with as much fondness as though it were only yesterday.
I remember Mr. Weber was an ever-present fixture at our dinner table, bicycling down the road many times a day, working in his yard and waving as you passed by and so many other things.
So, tomorrow, as I stand with his family and friends at his gravesite, I choose not to remember him in death as so many do, but to remember the vitality, life, love, and patience he showed to every person he came in touch with.
You will be missed, Mr. Weber......thank you for making all of our lives just a little better by knowing you.

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