When someone older than you dies, it’s sad, though I feel that I can cope. I hold memories dear, I appreciate the time I had with an individual, and I hope I can live as long as they walked the Earth.
If someone younger dies, it’s truly shocking. After being stunned, I often stop and appreciate where I am in life, and that I’m still here. A phrase runs through my head:
There, but for the grace of God, go I.
I’m not a religious person, but that phrase sticks with me. I am lucky to be where I am. I’m lucky to have had good fortune, and that my bad fortune hasn’t been catastrophic.
Today I got a note from a friend. He told me that Brian Moran (t, st, mvp, li) had passed away. Brian was a wonderful man, someone I’ve known close to 20 years. We worked in the same field, we were fellow speakers at events, and we’ve had numerous phone calls at times trying to find ways to work together in business. He was a big part of the PASS organization, of supporting SQL Saturdays, and helping grow the SQL community larger and stronger.
He is one of maybe a few dozen people in my professional life whose partner I’ve met, who’s met my wife, who I’ve had talked with while at home, and who loved Hawaiian shirts like me. We have daughters the same age, and we’ve shared many conversations over the years. We weren’t that close, but we respected and enjoyed each other’s company often. One of the relatively few people I’d stop and have an extended conversation with when we were together.
I have no details on what happened, and my heart goes out to his wife and family. It’s a stunning day, and as pat of my job, I’ll update a memory a sqlmemorial.org next week. One of the harder posts that I’ll have to write.