Your Pawpaw, Brent passed away a few weeks ago. He was one of the best men I have ever met. It’s still hard, of course, to think about the finality. We do our best to make sure you remember him, because he would have wanted that. You might not know that he died yet, but that’s a hard thing to teach a 4 year old. There’s a balance between life and happiness, and we’re all struggling to find out where to be.
It has me thinking now, more than ever, about life and death. I see it everywhere. A woman was killed while jogging, a man was shot while getting into his car, an accident just killed 13 people… There’s a new term called “Helicopter Parents” which describes parents who just hover and don’t allow their kids to experience life. It’s considered a bad thing, and almost entirely by old people or non-parents. Nowadays, it’s terrifying to be a parent because we see and feel all the terrible shit in the world.
Everything is horrible and the world sucks and life is awful and everyone is miserable and people are dying for no reason. This is how I live my life, filtering all this information and trying to make sense of it all, without disabling myself, Jacqueline, and you in the process. I am about to spend $50/month for a GPS tracker to put on you because I would not be able to live without you. This is real shit, buddy. When you didn’t exist I was so far removed from the real world that I didn’t need anyone or anything. Now, my life depends on others. It’s weird but also nice. My existence requires the existence of others.
It’s good to need others, kiddo. When you read this, maybe take some time and try to remember Brent, your Pawpaw.