And again

I guess it means you've been around a while when you start losing friends in groups. That's my story. A friend of mine - a guy I've known since broadcasting school, who replaced me at the station in Salisbury when I got a job at a station in Baltimore, died on Friday.  Colin did radio very well and became an all-around fill-in guy at a couple of stations here in Baltimore.

And then on Saturday afternoon, a guy who joined our class in sixth grade and went all the way through high school, and then on to college and law school, was killed APPARENTLY by his son-in-law during a family domestic. Bob has been an attorney around here for over 50 years.

I'm told that disease took Colin, and the insidious disease of people resolving their personal differences with bullets took Bob from us. 

I looked it up, how to react to losing two friends at once or in close succession. The internet, font of all wisdom, says that sort of double blow "creates a profound, overwhelming experience known as cumulative or 'stacked' grief, which can lead to intense shock, deep emotional distress, and isolation."

I'm sad. I'm not in shock, because at this point the only shocking thing would be for nothing bad to happen to anyone I care about. Our lives take twists and turns, and we do well if we just happen to hold the bar on this roller coaster ride.

And this is another reminder to enjoy every day! Tomorrow is not promised to any of us, but it's a good idea to keep that in mind. I'm grateful to be around and grateful to have this (occasionally ham-handed) way of sharing my feelings. 

Thank you.