Christoper was such a special young man.  His life was gone before he really got to live.  I cannot see a Cadalic Escalade that I do not think of him.  That was the car he wanted one day.

Christopher, you were such a special younge man.  I am so sorry that you did not get to experience life on this plane.....I hope that in the afterlife you are getting to enjoy life more than you did on the physical level. 

we never thought we were gonna be rockstars but we knew simple was amazing and it showed in the way jammin went on...one time we played "vaporize" by the broken bells....but all we had was me on acoustic and hitting a bassdrum pedal and you on the bass stomping on a tambourine lol...so simple yet worked perfectly because it could....sittin on the front porch enjoyin even the soft breeze that texas gives and even the sounds of messin up a chord because no ones perfect...

mango peach smoothie man..OH LORD(in a leprechan voice)

 Dude ill never forget the first time we ever actually seriously hang out for a long time....you had asked me to just keep you company as you went to pick up our friend kristin from abilene....we got about 30 minutes outside of town and we both realized that in order to go on an almost 4 hour long road trip we were about to really get to know eachother lol....the whole trip we barely listened to the music even though thats what connected us most, but converstation was next in line and thats all we ever did was talk...as we were going to pull out of town we went on this wild adventure that resulted in us standing next to a fountain full of pennies and quarters but realized we were more surrounded by 4 sleeping hobos on benches around this fountain and at that point just really didnt understand why we were downtown by the traintracks at midnight just wandering around instead of trying to get home lol...

When we went to go pick jessica and kellen up bc they were brokedown about 45 minutes out we both noticed how amazing and bright the stars were and didnt care about time because it didnt mean much to us but more of the opportunity to enjoy and take in something that is always here but never appreciated....and thats what you taught me and many others was to live life everyday to the fullest....the brave may live short lives, but the cautious never live at all...

When we went to san antonio multiple times we had this crazy routine that we would do before we left town so we were at our MAXIMUM comfortability for the trip we were about to endure...with the ipod charged and incense always burning in your car...maybe not a full tank of gas...but as long as our stomachs were full we were good :) lol...as we got to san antonio our friend had to go and apply at some jobs and all we did was go into almost every mall (about 4) and never go in any store but go straight to the food court haha...and guitar center...if we werent doing that we were cruising just in one general direction...didnt matter to us because all we did was make a U turn and do the same thing over again bc eachothers company was more important than the direction....you've steered my life in the right direction chris and ill never forget you brother.

We woke up early to get ready to lay you in you final resting place.  Seeing you yesterday was so difficult it left us very weary.  Although we were tired, we felt a sense of peace because yesterday, at your reception,  we spent time getting to know your friends, hearing how much they loved you and listening to the great times you had with them.

The sky was overcast and there was mist in the air.  We knew right when we stepped out of our room that something was different about today, we just didn't know you were going to throw us all for one last "loop".

We headed out for Starbucks at 0930.  Without much sleep this past week we needed a 2x shot (I'm sure you could appreciate this) to get us ready for what was sure to be a difficult morning.  We arrived at your final resting place with 10 minutes to spare. 

Soon your family and friends arrived.  It was hard to see you there in your urn that your mother and I picked out for you.  Greg, started the service with a wonderful prayer and a scripture reading.  We were reminded about the good times you had with your father, Deanna, Michael, Gamby, Aunt Cindy, Wayne and Mary Ellen, Greg and his family.  Deanna recalled a funny story of "Hole-in-Can".  Apparently, you wanted to show her the cool "Hulk Hands" in the toy section of Walmart.

The time to lay you in your final resting place came quickly.  The crowd walked over to the other side of the columnbarium where your niche was open waiting to receive you.  The caretaker gently lifted you and tried to place you into position. 

You just wouldn't fit.  He turned you on your head and tried again.  Nope, that wasn't going to work.  He tried again, this time "caddy-cornered".  Nope, that wasn't going to work either.  The funeral director was beside herself on what to do about the unfolding debacle.

At about this time, I just bet you were just laughing your @$$ off watching us all trying to figure out just what was happening.  You got us because we were not ready for your final display of individualism.  You were always very particular about how things fit you, so I guess you were just not that comfortable in the urn we had chosen for you.

It was soon apparent that we would have to return to the funeral home to pick out another urn for you to rest in.  You weren't going to let us off easy, huh?  Well, we returned and when we arrived the funeral home had an urn waiting that was much more your style.  You must have had your eye on it the whole time.  It was simple. No trim. Nothing fancy; just a gold lock.  It was perfect; I'm sure you wanted your Mom to know that she could keep the key to your heart forever.    I know you got a kick out of it but you could have given us a "sign" when we picked out the original. 

I guess that would have been way too easy and you wouldn't have gotten that one last laugh at our expense.  You were going to be stubborn till the end and  I wouldn't have had any other way.  Thanks for the experience.  We love and miss you; Rest in Peace.

I really enjoyed hanging out with Chris when we were in Yokota.  One time was particularly special to me.  I picked him up during his lunch hour from school and I took him through the drive-thru at Burger King.  We drove back to the campus, ate our lunch in the van, and talked life.  It was a special time because he seemed to break through and openly wrestle with life issues.  I was blessed to be the recipient of hearing his heart.  Chris was such a comical kid and really fun to be around, but he was also a deep soul who was a joy to know.

I am sad...but I also thank God for Chris. 

jason

jewbaca. my last memory of you was a found one, it was the night that u got back from maryland so obvously you were tired from the jet lag. and god only knows we would not let the oppurtunity pass, so we decided to tape you to the couch. we litterllay made a cacoon of tape covering your whole body. it was the funniest thing ever. as you awoke you had looked like u came out of a bad dream where u were being coverd in tape then you awoke to find out it was acctully reality. you let a out a weird noise that had us dying with laughter. and instead of being mad about it like anyone else would u started laughing with us.and went back to sleep. i didnt know you for that long man but you were a cool cat , full of life and inner peace from what i could tell.ill miss ya man, god bless you.

 I hope you three know that he would talk about you guys a lot to me. and he loved you guys sooo much. he missed you kids plenty.

I still can't believe this all happened. Chris was such a part of my life, and still is. During the years I lived in Japan (7th through 10th grade) Chris was always there. He is someone I truly cared for and admired. We went through so many of those 'awkward growing up' things together...even the akward 'almost date'...haha. To be honest, he was one of my first real best friends. Chris is a friend who quickly became one of my close friends as soon as we met. I remember he became the cause of many of my laughs and good memories. Especially through high school, Chris was definitely a core member of my group of friends, or whatever high schoolers call it. I can remember vivdly so many talks we had, trips we took, and jokes we made. He is someone I will remember forever. I can even remember so well the night before he moved away, he walked all the way over to my house to give me a letter he wrote me. I still have that letter today. He was one of the nicest, truest friends I'll ever have.

It is strange how out of touch you can get with such good friends, yet when you look back you can see how they are still a part of your life today. Chris is still part of my life, and a dear friend.I miss you, Chris.

Love,

Julia

The Christmas I was priviledged to spend with my beautiful grandson.   

Today I went to sit with some very dear ladies from my small group Bible study and we talked about Chris.  One of the most special memories I have of my baby boy was when he and my husband used to stop at the grocery store and they would both bring me home a flower.  He was such a darling boy...

I have so many things left unsaid but I know that my Lord had Christopher in His arms during those final moments and he told my baby that his family loved him dearly.  Despite all the pain I feel right now, I still would not trade it for anything. He's still my firstborn and holds a very special piece of my heart with him.

I love you so much, sweet pea!

Mama