I celebrated/commemorated two birthdays today. I suppose I had also, perhaps inadvertently, brought back some memories from the grave, though not entirely by myself.
I sent JB his obligatory birthday text message, as I do on this date every year. I met JB many years ago when we were attending USC. After we graduated and through the years, we've managed to keep in contact. I'm guessing that I haven't seen him since 2002. He still lives in Texas. As far as I know, he's doing all right.
As we do from time to time, exclusively through text message (we haven't spoken over the phone in years), we got to reminiscing and thinking back to our time in college. I told him, as I've told many other people through the years, that if there was ever a four-year period of my life that I could return to and relive, it would be those four years I spent at USC. I learned so much, both inside and outside of the classroom, during my time in college and those were, without question, my greatest years in academia. I'd go back in a heartbeat, no questions asked.
In an unexpected turn, he got to talking about our good friend, DT, who tragically passed away in December 2024. DT, who we also referred to affectionately as "The Five Deuce", after the jersey number he wore during his days on the USC football team, had been battling multiple sclerosis and some other health issues and died unexpectedly that year. JB had recently been in communication with Tim, who was one of DT's friends from their time living in Las Vegas, and somehow DT's name had come up. Tim had gone to USC with DT and JB and I would meet them during our freshman year. Tim and DT were juniors at the time. Tim had divulged to JB that in the months before DT's death, DT's health had deteriorated, to where he had move back in with his mother. DT's health eventually took a turn for the worse. As JB put it, one day DT had overexerted himself and his mother came home and "found him".
Upon hearing that, I told JB:
No mom should ever come to that.
I guess DT had also been wheelchair-bound as well, so obviously his mobility had already been compromised.
This was DT, obviously in better and seemingly healthier times.
I know that people might use this phrase all the time, but in all seriousness, DT was a good guy. He really and truly was. JB, Tim, and I still miss our friend. I guess in some way, like the song says, "I'll mourn you 'til I join you". Collectively, but in our own ways, I suppose we are.
DT was a big 2Pac fan, so the above song is somewhat fitting.
The other birthday today would be that of my maternal grandmother, who, if she were still alive, would have turned 108 today. She died in 2008 at the age of 90. Congestive heart failure. Died in her sleep. That's how she wanted to go. By her own assertion and insistence, she was ready to die back in 1990. Didn't quite work out that way. God would keep her around for 18 more years after that. I guess in some way, she wasn't quite done raising her four grandchildren.
I don't have many mementos, or even pictures, of Grandma. Some years ago, after we were cleaning the house after Mom died, I came across this Bible. Obviously, it's in Spanish. The inscription inside the Bible is also in Spanish. A woman by the name of Alicia had given her this Bible and referred to Grandma as her beloved sister in Christ. The date of Alicia's inscription is May 18, 1965. Grandma was 46-years old at the time. Beyond this, I don't know much more about this Bible, who Alicia was to Grandma, or what the circumstances were behind Alicia giving Grandma this Bible.
In the end, today was about JB and Grandma, with a little bit of DT mixed in.
Nothing wrong with celebrating the living, while commemorating the dearly departed.
I do what I can.
Loading comments...