On January 9th, we took a ride to his house in Georgia and discovered noone home. When Paul looked in the window, he saw very little furnishings in the house. "Could he have moved in with a family member" I asked? Or maybe he is in a nursing home?" "Why don't you look up his brothers number on your phone," Paul suggested. So I did. It didn't take long to discover Mike's obituary as soon as I typed in his brothers name. We were shocked and saddened that we knew nothing about this.
The reason I am writing this out like this is to show the lesson that Paul and I learned from the experience. How very important it is to keep in touch with loved ones. To not let the busyness of life interfere with what is of utmost importance and that is PEOPLE!!! To stop and call or send a note. To put people first!
My husband felt like he was not a very good friend to Mike for this to have happened without him knowing about it. He is mourning his friend Mike now. Fondly called "MikeyT" by him. I could only reassure him that he had been a very good friend to Mike for years. Mike had become a bit of a recluse because of his muscular dystrophy. He stayed home for the last few years and had help from other resources. But I know my husband's heart hurts.
So let me just say this about MikeyT. He and Paul were friends for about 25 years. They met at church. They really understood eachother. Mikey would call Paul Magilla Gorilla! He admired Pauls ability to fix things. They would chat on the phone for hours. When Faith was little the three of them started a car business called "Good Faith Auto" and would go to Hirshacks auction to buy cars and sell for a profit. They spent a lot of hours talking and planning to make a few extra bucks. Many hours at the auction eating junk food and just being together! Paul recalled to me one time that as they were driving there one time, they heard "Maria" the song by Brooks and Dunn on the radio! He, Mike and Faith were all singing it together at the top of their lungs! What a great song!
Mikey was the best man at our wedding! He was sweet and supportive to me. He would talk to me on the phone too, at length. He had funny stories! Paul told me about the time when he was at a church dinner with Mike and his wife Stephanie. Paul was eating something from the buffet table and apparently it didn't taste very good. Paul commented about how terrible it was, only to find out that it was Mike's wife who had cooked it!! After the uncomfortable moment had passed, it was always something they could look back on and laugh at!!
Another time, Paul had to go to the airport to pick up Mike after his trip to Florida. They were waiting in line at the baggage claim for his suitcase. When they finally found it, Paul figured it was time to go but Mike said that he had another box that he was looking for. It was a box of oranges. They waited and waited and it never showed up on the baggage carousel. Finally Paul wandered over to the other baggage claim area and there were some oranges ~~falling out of a box. It was a box all right but it was in a Stayfree Maxi Pad Box with tape all around it and the oranges were falling out! They had a great laugh over that one! Surely you could have found another container to put them in Mikey?!!
I remember him telling me once that Paul and I had a wonderful marriage because as he put it. Paul "cherished" me and that is something you don't see a lot of these days. He would buy our family of 7 a case of toilet paper for Christmas. He knew how much we could use it. It made me laugh when I opened that big box! He worked for St Albans Glass. He fixed my sliding glass door in the kitchen for me. He had a presence about him. Conversation and coffee was what he loved because he was unable to get around very well. And he really did think carefully about what he said most of the time. Though I never did confront him even though he spilled the beans about Paul's surprise 50th Birthday Party.
Mikey, you were a special guy. I am sorry, we were not there for you at the end. Thank you for the laughter and wisdom you shared with us. You loved the Lord and I know you are in Paradise with HIM now.
