I will be attending a heart breaking veiwing today and funeral tomorrow...

93Devil · Jul 2, 2009

The family received friends last night during a driving rainstorm and lightening storm that lasted almost the entirety of the two hours. Even with these conditions, I had to wait 35 minutes in line to give them my condolences in person.

I'm pretty sure I could open up a high school gym this morning and hold this funeral. The guestbook provided by the funeral home has 152 comments on it already.

This family has touched so many people in such a positive way, that it really makes you question what happens in the great scheme. Hopefully someway, somehow that we do not understand yet this family will be reunited with this little boy. Keeping that thought is the only way I could stay sane if I was them.

As I was waiting in like with a couple other mutual friends, the father, who is Tony Siragusa big and Italian, seemed to be doing well, but when he saw the glue friend in our group he just lost it. They buried their faces in each other's shoulders (mind you one guy is giving up about 200 pounds in this embrace) and I just heard the father keep saying how much he missed his boy.

The father requested a lot of poker nights. He just said he needed an escape.

KYSportsWriter · Jul 2, 2009

damn. no other words for this.

expendable · Jul 2, 2009

Try your best to give him every poker night he requests. Hopefully, it won't be that many, and I doubt it will, as he really needs to be there for/with his family.

sportsguydave · Jul 2, 2009

My thoughts are with everyone concerned with this awful story. There, but for the grace of God, go any of us with kids.

Stories like this are what made me jump at the chance to go work in the toy department. The things I write about don't wake me up in the middle of the night any more.

93Devil · Jul 2, 2009

The service was a packed house. The Priest was off his game with a hesitant delivery, but he did say some things to help keep your sanity. He mentioned that God gives life and when that life is worthy of Heaven, He might take the life away. He also mentioned that this was a person without sin, so there is no doubt that the boy is in Heaven at this moment.

The procession of cars down the road probably reached close to 80. I also noticed some cool things people were doing; a few people stopped their cars and waited for the procession to pass. One man even got out of his truck and took off his hat. I thought that was very classy.

Obviously, I will never forget the last 24 hours, but hopefully I can take something positive from this experience. The Priest mentioned that you are given a gift of time from God when you have a child, and that taking advantage of every moment you are given is very important.

Maybe that is what I will take from this. I will also never forget the Priest walking away at the gravesite to his track and just start crying. I have never seen that before.

sportsguydave · Jul 2, 2009

93Devil: I feel for you. I covered several funerals like that over the years. It never got any easier. You always think, "There, but for the grace of God, go I." You feel guilty for feeling relieved that it's someone else and not you.

You are definitely on the right track. However small, take some good from it. That usually helps. There's no worse feeling in the world than losing someone and feeling like there was unfinished business... like they died not knowing how you really felt about them.

I lost my fiancee five years ago last month, and I never got to spend enough time with her. Now, I'd give anything for one more day with her.

Here's a little story that helps encapsulate what we all need to do, but often lose in the hustle and bustle of our daily lives:

===============================================================================

Just Five More Minutes
by: Author Unknown, Source Unknown

While at the park one day, a woman sat down next to a man on a bench near a playground.
“That’s my son over there,” she said, pointing to a little boy in a red sweater who was gliding down the slide.

“He’s a fine looking boy” the man said. “That’s my daughter on the bike in the white dress.”

Then, looking at his watch, he called to his daughter. “What do you say we go, Melissa?”

Melissa pleaded, “Just five more minutes, Dad. Please? Just five more minutes.”

The man nodded and Melissa continued to ride her bike to her heart’s content. Minutes passed and the father stood and called again to his daughter. “Time to go now?”

Again Melissa pleaded, “Five more minutes, Dad. Just five more minutes.”

The man smiled and said, “OK.”

“My, you certainly are a patient father,” the woman responded.

The man smiled and then said, “Her older brother Tommy was killed by a drunk driver last year while he was riding his bike near here. I never spent much time with Tommy and now I’d give anything for just five more minutes with him. I’ve vowed not to make the same mistake with Melissa.

"She thinks she has five more minutes to ride her bike. The truth is, I get five more minutes to watch her play.”

Life is all about making priorities, what are your priorities?
Give someone you love 5 more minutes of your time today!