More Sadness

I told myself that I wasn't going to write about death anymore, after my last reflections when my high school friend died, but it has reared its head again, claiming one of my sons friends in an automobile accident. I heard the boy's name but it didn't register with me who it was until I was talking to my son and found out it was a teammate of his in little league. Then I remembered him. There were three brothers who played together on the team, the youngest wasn't really old enough to be on the same team, but since the age requirements were only loosely applied and since he was good enough to play with the bigger kids they let him play with his two brothers. Those three made up the heart of the team, all being fierce competitors who would grab a bat and glove anytime they had some free time and play and practice on their own. The oldest was the leader, more aggressive in the field and at the plate. The youngest one looked like he would follow his oldest brother's lead as being an aggressive player. The middle one was perhaps the most talented of the three, being as adept with the bat as the glove. But his lack of assertiveness in the first few years of league play might lead some to underestimate him. A quiet, polite, intelligent kid, he was a player that the team could count on for a solid game every time. He was the one who now, several years after little league and into his junior year in high school, would lose his life on this April day coming home from school with his younger brother. A tragic loss of a kid who impressed me with the way he carried himself and with the kind of person he was growing up to be. I can only imagine how his parents are feeling, and I hope I never have to face that situation.