56 IF...

Had Bill been alive today, he would have been 56. I have just returned from a trip to the northeast. During the trip, my nephews (Joe & Rob) and I visited Bill's resting place in Pennsylvania. While we were there, I commented about the fact that Bill would have soon been 56 and that it would have been interesting to see him at 60. Unfortunately, that will never happen.

Some people believe that when your "time is up" you die no matter what you are doing. While I may have once thought that to be true, I no longer believe in a predetermined life. I truly believe that Bill would have been with us today if he could have beat his greatest demon - alcohol. I had fought with him about his drinking from 1984 (when I discovered he had a problem) until the time of his death. At times the fights were a little rough and at other times I simply told him that I worried about him and that I wanted him to live so that I would have my brother in our old age. His comment was that he "wasn't going to die."

My nephews and I drank a toast to Bill at the cemetery, but I would have rather spoken to him on the phone. For those of you who may have confronted Bill about his drinking on more that one occasion, I salute you. To anyone that thought it was fun to drink with him knowing that he had a problem, I can only hope that you will think twice the next time. It's too late to help Bill - that moment has forever past. Remember that when you see another friend in need.

He is a picture of Bill's place of internment from December 31, 2007.