My buddy Sean Gage died on Saturday (5/1/2010). He was one of the best friends a man could know. We shared weeks of bloody adventures, nights of steely pints and hours of philosophical ponderings. I have known Gage for a little over a decade. As I have considered his death for the past 24 hours, I have thought much about the life that he gave.
Gage helped keep my spine in alignment when I fell off that balcony years ago. He grieved with me when news came that my cousin Pete had died from a drug overdose. He surfed big waves on his first day out with me. He dropped everything for a friend... a semester class... even a girl. We wrestled, danced on speakers, took the stage, conquered the night and loved the days. The dude is a warrior poet.
I remember a trip we took together on the outer banks. Gage drove 9 hours just to crash my cousin's wedding (who he had never met). It was an incredible weekend. Yeah. Gage was the kind of guy you would write about. I remember writing a poem about him that weekend in North Carolina. The poem is called "two ninjas":
and ye to engage
a battle to begin with feist
before ye turn the last page
discovered, two allies disguised
an irish pillager opposes the pilipino cornerstone
pounding strength against wiry scrap
too fatigued to finish this battle alone
no one was granted the ultimate blow, the last tap
rather “ye two will combat together”
quoted the sky’s wise sage
fight tall, brother with brother
andy – two ninjas – gage
That's grieving for you.
Sean took his own life. I don't want to go into it.
The funeral... tears. When I looked around the sanctuary, I saw so many broken hearts. Sean filled our hearts. He was a gift from God. I thank the Maker that I knew Sean.
It is still so damn hard.
