In Memory Of John
I don’t think any of my favorite memories of John are appropriate for public display. Suffice to say that everything noteworthy discovered between the ages of 15 and 18, I discovered with John. From the third Led Zeppelin album, to casual substance abuse, to Girls.
Which, like Led Zeppelin, must be capitalized.
It’s impossible to properly articulate the nature of that bond with words alone. You could break out of Alcatraz with someone, and yet it still wouldn’t be anything like escaping childhood.
It doesn’t just affect you, it doesn’t change you. It really defines you.
I don’t just think of John, he’s a part of me. To this day, I hear his laugh whenever I see something he would have found funny. When I set up a wisecrack, it’s his voice in my head telling me how to pace it. Coz, Alan if you’re out there, you guys too. I feel like the four of us went to the movies, caught a new one called Life, and everything we saw that day became inside jokes between us forever.
I don’t personally believe in any kind of idealogical afterlife, but John gave me something to aspire to, something worth earning. He’s alive. He’s immortal. At least to us. He walked out to a permanent standing ovation from everyone in his audience. Not just for showing up, but because he was amazing.
November 7th, 2009 at 7:35 am
You all are making me cry, but in a good way. Everyday I am more and more impressed with the love and admiration that everyone in John’s life felt for him. What a tribute to such an amazing person that gave so much to the world, or at least our world!
-Rachel