Dan is back in the hospital, with bleeding in his brain. And tonight I read Mary Jane's note staying that her husband, and my friend Ken has mind and spirit are gone, and she's just sitting with him waiting for the body to to take the
checkered flag.
What do I say about Ken? He was one of the first people to talk to me when I joined the SCCA, an engineer who taught mea great deal about suspension dynamics. He raced an E Production 1st generation RX-7 with a 13B Rotary. Prods are pretty heavily modified, and thus. Ken never really got the car running right, but it looked like this season he might. Now he never will.
He was a giving man. He and his wife were at the track most race weekends to help out, whether the car was running or not. We could sit at the Saturday night beer party and talk racing for hours. He volunteered his time and engineering chops to assess custom roll cages so racing would be safer. He encouraged me during my brief racing career. And he was my friend.
And now Ken's wife sits by the body his mind and spirit have already fled. His children have gathered around knowing this is the last memory they'll have of him. On what will be his last birthday.
I am tired of my friends getting sick and dying. I know this won't stop, it will accelerate as I age. If I'm lucky enough to live to a ripe old age I'll get to see a lot more friends and family pass. Five years ago my father told me that not a month went by that he at least went to a viewing. We are human beings, and people age and die. Death is an inherent part of life, at least in this world if the textures are to be believed. I don't know if there is an afterlife. It's not part of the Jewish tradition, the first mentions come from the Gospels. It may be there is nothing waiting for us beyond, and from dust we came, to dust we must return. While my rational mind remains skeptical, I hope there is more, for there are so many good people who have departed, so many minds and personalities missing that how can we not hope to meet again at that great race course in the sky.
Ken took his final checkered flag today at 11:45 P.M. It was his birthday. Goodbye my friend, and I look forward to beating you in heaven.
Death may be an inherent part of life, but I damned well don't have to like it.