Tonight, shortly before 9:30pm on my way to pick up the boy my phone rang. It was one of my oldest friends, Andi. The first thing she said to me was “I’m sorry to call so late” and it was with those words that I knew whatever she had to say wasn’t good.
And it wasn’t.
Last Sunday a high school friend of ours was riding her bike and was struck from behind by a car. She was pronounced dead at the scene. She had been married 8 months and 2 days.
The last time I saw Jess was at our 10 year high school reunion. The other two home office employees wouldn’t step foot back “there”, so I went alone. I was nervous, being alone, despite knowing most of my class–there weren’t that many of us. I saw Jess fairly quickly, and as always she was welcoming and friendly.
And boisterous, God that woman was always so….Loud 
I can still remember, when they had all the women get on the dance floor that were no longer single, her yelling jokingly how they had sold out. She was always right there, in your face.
Even sadder still, we only found out by a fluke. One of our other high school classmates manages a hotel where most of the funeral guests are staying-one of them told her by happenstance. Now it’s a rush to try to let the rest of our class know, or at least try to. While Jess and I were never exceptionally close, it’s still breaks my heart to think that others wouldn’t know, that they wouldn’t be extending their thoughts and prayers at her funeral on Sat. So I will be making the trek home, to pay my respects. It’s the least I can do.
I won’t claim to have been her closest friend, and yet somehow this one hits home in a way that even surprises me.
And if there’s a small fire in heaven, started by…say…a candle centerpiece…then we will know for sure it was Jess
Rest in Peace
The reunion was in my mind as well. And how much growing up and out of the Burg, and growing more into her personality made such a difference with how happy she was.
As with you, I do not exaggerate her role in my life. We were friendly classmates more than a decade ago. But her death has made ripples in my emotional birdbath that I never would have expected. None more poignant than the fact that a happy, laughing force in this world has been lost.
And hi!
Nice to find you on the blogosphere, old Kiester buddy.
I couldn’t agree more with what you have said, I too do not claim to be the closest of friends with Jess, but losing a classmate at a young age of 31 is a feeling that I can not explain. I have thought about her often, and my own fate, and what is in store for my life. I can just imagine her telling her husband that she was going out for a bike ride and never returning home…I was sorry I wasn’t able to make it to the funeral on Saturday as we were returning from vacation in Myrtle Beach that day….but believe me all of HHS Class of 1995 was on my mind during the drive home.