Eulogy to a friend.

For several months I had been aware that a friend of mine had been quite ill. However, he lived in another city, and I've had very little contact with him over the past 5+ years. Last Tuesday I was informed that he had passed away. I attended the viewing on Friday evening and his funeral on Saturday morning.

Shawn Sorenson had to be one of the most unique people I have ever met. If you saw him next to me, you would have never thought of us as friends. Truth be told, in high school I didn't want to have anything to do with him.

But people change. And I've never met anyone who changed as much as he did.

Sometime after high school he quit drugs, alcohol, and smoking. He did all this without losing his personality; without losing who he was. He was still a coarse, fun-loving person. Coarse because his style of humor would be offensive to most people I know. He was just offensive enough to be funny without being annoying. It took a certain style of humor to appreciate his antics, and it was always more fun to play along with him than it was to ask him to stop.

Fun loving because there was never a dull moment. I know that phrase is used often, but with Shawn it was true. You never knew if you were going to wake up in the morning by being doused with barbecue sauce or being poked with the blunt end of his dull sword. Yes, the same sword he dueled with when my other friend challenged him to sword fights. He loved making you squirm, but only just enough. If he got bored, the gears would start turning and he would always come up with something to do. Like dousing a soccer ball in gasoline and wrapping it with a discarded bedsheet, then lighting it on fire and playing flaming soccer. Oh, the memories. Sometimes I wonder how he survived as long as he did.

Despite the coarseness, he was an irrevocable nerd. You'd never be able to tell this just by looking at him. He didn't have greasy hair, glasses, a pale complexion, or a thin build. (Wow, I totally just described myself. That's kinda scary.) Yet he sat around the table with us and played Star Wars RPG on many occasions. Usually he played a wookie and took advantage of the freedom of gameplay by injuring as many people as possible just for kicks to see how long it would take for authorities to detain him. It was hard to roll the dice when you're laughing so hard you can't see through the tears.

Another word that describes him is generous. If you had issues, he'd be the first one to offer you a ride, or an extra coat, or to join him in partaking of his amazing barbecue ribs. He never complained to me, even when his health had deteriorated to the point where he was in excruciating pain. He never talked about his ailments. He was more interested in inviting you to go fishing or something else fun.

It was because of his generosity and love that he won the hearts of all who knew him. It was a simple Christlike attribute, yet it stood out. It was hard to not like him. I can almost hear him whispering in my ear, "Hey sonofabitch, how the hell are you?"

Shawn lived 30 years. He was 3 months younger than myself. It was his time to go; his time to be released from his pain. There's a lot of work to do in the next life, and his experiences in this life more than qualifies him.

I won't see him for another 30 years or more. Its okay, though. Seeing Shawn again will be well worth the wait.