Rest in peace, Mike.

I was at a funeral service for a coworker who was also a good friend.  It was rather sudden, taken away by the big C.

How do you find words to convey loss without sounding trite?  I don't remember much of the service for my dad but I do remember how I was feeling.  I wondered if it will be the same for his family? People going up to them to say their condolences. I think, even if they don't remember the words, they will remember the support and that people cared.

The pain never goes away.  You think it does and you might forget about it once in a while.  But when you're sitting at someone's funeral and you're watching their family cry, it all comes back.  I don't remember anything people were saying to me but I do remember the very moment when it hit me that my dad is truly gone and never to return.  I remember thinking the next day how surprising it was that the sun came up and the skies were blue.  People were going on with their daily lives as if there was not a great loss in the world and I'm in pain.

Mike, you will be sorely missed.  Rest in peace.