Dear John,
Physics does not come in tiny bits but sizable lumps. Sometimes after a long lecture, finishing a worthwhile subject, seconds before the bell rings we say 'Well, this is a good point to stop'. So it is with our lives, after bravely fighting a battle for 17 years, you called it quits. To me you were the older brother that my parents did not provide. In my darkest days at the UWyo, when I had a hard time filling the 'Next of Kin' box of the registration form, looking into the abyss from the very edge, I had your friendship and support. We enjoyed our youth, mature and elderly years together, shared each other's joys and sorrows. Never lost contact, always visiting each other, planned for a get together even when 7000 miles apart. Old age is never easy but the physical side may be endured with stoicism. It is the departing friends and the resulting loneliness of being left behind that hurts most. I thanked you when you were alive and now I thank again for enriching my life and your friendship.