Wednesday, May 25, 2005
The Saddest News
I have known this man since junior high school
We went to high school and college together. He was the only friend I had in some of the darkest hours of my life. I stayed with him many nights when the pressure of medical school was giving him anxiety attacks. I was one of the few friends he had through a very ugly divorce. I am "uncle" to his three children.
Even though we have lived 1500 miles apart for the last 20 years we spoke on the phone at least weekly. We had enormous long distance bills during basketball season because we still enjoyed watching games "together." When he was in medical school we had season tickets to watch one of the great Indiana University teams win yet another Big Ten Championship and drove from Indianapolis to Bloomington twice a week all season long -- even two days before his first daughter was due. That season may be the fondest memory I have apart from those I have made with my wife.
His brother called me a late Sunday and he is dead. A car accident. There is now a very large hole in my life. I loved Ken Stanley a great deal and I will miss him very much.
He was a great father and a safe zone for children that have had a very tumultuous life. Those girls will miss him in ways I am not sure even they can imagine just yet.
He better stay in shape and keep his jumper accurate, because when I join him I will still take him underneath and waste his bony butt. That jumper is the only thing that will keep him in the game.
We went to high school and college together. He was the only friend I had in some of the darkest hours of my life. I stayed with him many nights when the pressure of medical school was giving him anxiety attacks. I was one of the few friends he had through a very ugly divorce. I am "uncle" to his three children.
Even though we have lived 1500 miles apart for the last 20 years we spoke on the phone at least weekly. We had enormous long distance bills during basketball season because we still enjoyed watching games "together." When he was in medical school we had season tickets to watch one of the great Indiana University teams win yet another Big Ten Championship and drove from Indianapolis to Bloomington twice a week all season long -- even two days before his first daughter was due. That season may be the fondest memory I have apart from those I have made with my wife.
His brother called me a late Sunday and he is dead. A car accident. There is now a very large hole in my life. I loved Ken Stanley a great deal and I will miss him very much.
He was a great father and a safe zone for children that have had a very tumultuous life. Those girls will miss him in ways I am not sure even they can imagine just yet.
He better stay in shape and keep his jumper accurate, because when I join him I will still take him underneath and waste his bony butt. That jumper is the only thing that will keep him in the game.
