See You Soon

A best man is someone you want to stand beside you on your best day because they are always beside you on your worst days. 

There was one person I wanted to be my best man at my wedding someday, and that was Uncle Bill.

I was sensitive, insecure, and slow at learning things. He didn’t care. He laughed with me, cried with me, and watched ball games with me. He taught me how to mow the lawn, split wood and overall to laugh and enjoy life. He taught me how to never let my mistakes own me, to move on and not dwell on any failure.

He would take me to McDonald's in the middle of the work day so I could get a quarter pounder, a large fry, and a strawberry milkshake. We went hunting once, and I wore my dad's rubber rain boots as I trudged through the woods; you could have heard us coming from a mile away. Uncle Bill belly-laughed at me and shook his head. He never held a grudge against anyone. He was humble and easy to be around. Not because he never made any mistakes in life, he did, but because he knew who he was and what he deserved before God. When you understand the grace given to you, you tend to show much more grace to others.

On March 1, 2017, I received a text message that Uncle Bill had choked on some food and was on life support. When I first heard that, an ocean of special memories flooded my mind. But then there was panic; if this was going to be the end, I felt as if I was going to be robbed of more special memories. That is when you know someone has left an impact, and their departure seems to be way too soon.

When I got the news, I drove 10 hours from Michigan to Pennsylvania so I could say goodbye to someone I wouldn’t have made it this far without. I sat there in his room, just him and me, read him the Bible, prayed for him, shared stories with him, and even slept in the hospital so I could be close to him one more time. I woke up that next morning with a lump in my throat because I knew it was time to say goodbye. I quietly walked up to him, grabbed his hand, and, with tears in my eyes, said, “You’re my best man, Uncle Bill; thanks for everything; I’ll see you on the other side.”

Thanks, Uncle Bill. You were the best uncle a loser kid like me could have ever had. Someday, on my best day, I’ll remember men like YOU who held my hand on the worst days.

I’LL SEE YOU REAL SOON

I Thessalonians 4:13

“And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.”