Life's too short..

This week, someone posted an old school photo on Facebook. The photo must've been over 20 years ago, when I was about 8 years old.

It certainly brought back some memories, especially as most of the class seemed to have picked up on it and exchanged messages and memories.

One thing that I discovered was that two boys from that class have since passed away. One was in the RAF (Royal Air Force) and was apparently killed in action. The other was killed in a car crash not far from our old school.

This really affected me, seeing all of those old faces, full of youthful innocence and hope for the future, and realising that not all of them would get to experience the things we take for granted. They'll never get married, or have kids of their own.

Maybe it gets to you more when it is someone your own age, someone you knew when you were a kid and you suddenly realise how precious life is.

About a year before that photo was taken, another boy in our class died. He had a history of health problems, mostly with his heart and he sadly passed away when he was seven years old.

This was my first experience of death and I still think about it a lot. One day you're playing football in the playground then one of the kids is off school for a few days before you hear that he died in hospital. You don't really understand it, only that he won't be coming back to school.

Our class were allowed to go to the funeral. It was a Catholic school attached to the church so we didn't have far to go from class but one thing that still bugs me to this day is that our class, his class, the friends who saw him everyday had to leave his funeral early to go for swimming lessons at the local pool.

Even now this strikes me as insensitive. I remember we had to sit at the back of the church so that our exit wouldn't disturb the service. Surely it wouldn't have hurt to miss the swimming lesson just this once? After all, it was extraordinary circumstances.

While we were waiting for the bus to take us to the pool, I remember hearing the loudest bang I've ever heard. I couldn't tell you what it was but back then but I remember it made me jump. I thought it was our dearly departed friend showing his displeasure at our premature exit and I felt guilty for abandoning him and also felt resentment at being forced to leave him alone. Maybe even as an 8 year old I thought too much about things!

A couple of years later, we finished Primary school and all went our separate ways, on to various High schools and lost touch (until Facebook).

Almost twenty years had passed when one Saturday morning I went to check the mail at my front door and looking up at me was a face I recognised but couldn't quite place. In my confusion I even thought it was my own picture. On the front page of the local newspaper was an old school photo of the classmate who had died. He was smiling, looking directly at the camera in the old school uniform.

It turns out that the children's hospital where he had died had been involved in an organ harvesting scandal and his parent's had fought a long battle to force the hospital to return his organs. It had come to light many years later and I remember hearing about it on the news but it never crossed my mind that anyone I knew would be affected.

I often think about those old classmates and those years were probably the happiest of my life (until I met my gorgeous Wife obviously!), so I was pretty excited when one of them posted that photo and more people came across it and got in touch. It brought back lots of memories but it also made me realise how far I've come.

I'm sure most are still living in the same area we grew up in, seeing the same faces and going to the same places. I miss it sometimes, but there is so much in this world to discover that I'm also glad I moved on. I'd love to go back one day and show my Wife 'round our way' where I grew up, but a short visit will be enough for me.

You can't live in the past and you owe it to those who fell along the way to live every moment.

Yes Man (& Woman)

Last night we went out with friends. Nothing fancy, just a meal, then a few drinks in a new bar afterwards. But it was a good night, enjoyed by all (I think!).

This year, my wife and I have made a conscious decision to reconnect with the friends we neglected last year. The neglect wasn't a deliberate thing, but we spent the entire year planning our Wedding, and then after Hurricane Ike hit, re-planning our Wedding.

We got married in November, went on honeymoon (which is where my new profile picture is from by the way) and then straight into Thanksgiving. Once that was out of the way, all thoughts turned to Christmas.

Only now are things starting to settle down. We found ourselves emotionally, and physically drained after such a busy but amazing year. We had a nice quiet Christmas, but it didn't really feel like Christmas, and it was the first New Year's Eve I can remember that I've been in my own home when midnight struck.

The thing with planning a Wedding is that most other things come second on your priority scale. Everything is geared to that one day, and then when it's all over, there's a bit of an anti-climax. Not with the marriage, but you've spent so long planning and working towards something that it's a bit of a culture shock when there's nothing to do and nowhere to go. You can't help but feel a bit lost and that's when things start to catch up with you.

The latest Jim Carrey movie, 'Yes Man' is about a guy who decides to say yes to everything. Based on the real life account of author Danny Wallace, who having found himself in a similar predicament as us (though for different reasons) decided to spend an entire year saying yes to everything to see where it took him. The book is a good read, although I haven't seen the movie yet. Maybe my wife & I can take Danny's experience as our inspiration. I won't spoil the book for you but I would recommend checking out Danny's work when you have the time (http://www.dannywallace.com/).

So this year we're determined to re-open our diary and get out more. We're hoping to fit in a couple of trips too but we've made a decent start to our new busier calendar. This is the second consecutive weekend we've had engagements at least two of the days.

This afternoon we're at a six year old's birthday party at a roller skating rink so only time will tell whether we still feel like saying yes after that!

Wish me luck..

Andy