Gone Too Soon

This morning I learned that Lee Collins, a friend of mine from college, died in a plane crash. It is so strange to think of someone who was SO alive no longer being, well, alive. Couch potatoes make a transition to death easier in my mind since they were stagnant in life anyway. But Lee was not potato-esque at all. He flew helicopters in the Air Force, was always the first person with a quip or a kind word and could be summed up with the word "animated."

Lee is also the reason Hubby and I met. Lee and I had a horse-back riding class (hey, it was Texas) in college. He was one of the first people I met on campus in fact. He suggested that I join Angel Flight. Through AnF, I met Ken and, well, that has turned out quite well. For that, sweet Lee, I will always be indebted to you.

One of my favorite memories of Lee is him marching in a POW/MIA vigil in the middle of the night. A true patriot, he wanted to fly for as long as he could remember. He died in a plane crash, I am not sure if that is bittersweet or one of life's cruelties.

So an electronic toast to my beautiful, kind, sweet friend. In your memory, I will hold Ken and Luc that much tighter today. You left us way too early; may you fly even higher in the afterlife.