As I grow older…

It's a sad realization as I get older that the people in my life as I was a child are passing away.

A few weeks ago, I was informed that the mother of a childhood friend of mine died this morning.  Though I had pretty much lost contact with her (Reba) and my childhood friend (Travis) as well, I was aware of what was going on in their lives through my parents' gossip chain. I grew up going to a fairly small church with an even smaller congregation of deaf members, so in a way it was a second family for me growing up.  Most of this group of deaf members would go camping every year, if not every few months and those are some of my fondest memories of my youth.  My friend's mother, Reba, was always a part of the group camping trips. I remember she was usually the one who brought the games like Rummikub, Uno or Skip-Bo.  The addiction the my parents and the other adults had to those games was insane.

I also remember Reba was crafty.  She used to sew or knit a lot.  She had one beanie-style cap she wore that was the goofiest looking thing, but she wore it without shame.  She somehow knitted parts of Pespi cans into the beanie.  How they never tore her skull up is a mystery.

Anyway... it's weird to know that I'm getting to a point in life when the friends and acquaintances of my parents I've known for so long and remember from my youth are now at an age when death will be knocking at their door.  It really brings mortality to the foreground of my thoughts lately.