2 posts tagged “family”

Bob Worral was a hell of a guy.

He could make you feel like a lifelong friend after one conversation.  Because he was intensely interested in other people, he could quickly find out which of his many interests overlapped yours, and soon you'd be talking like old friends.  His friends and coworkers loved him for his humor, his outreach to others, his basic decency and the fact that any adventure you had with him was bound to make a good story. 

When he married my sister Maryjo two years ago, they were determined to make it not just a beautiful day for themselves, but for everyone they cared about.  They drew family and friends from all over America to St. Augustine, Florida, a city where they didn't live but whose beauty had impressed them in a trip the previous year.  It was a great ceremony, a great day, and all us Baxters were overjoyed that MJ had found a complementary soul, someone who shared her taste for world travel and adventure.

Earlier this month, on a business trip to India, Bob spent a day at the Taj Mahal, and reckoned it one of the best days of his life.  It was a monument to love, he later wrote in an email, and the love that built it was palpable everywhere.

Two days later, MJ got the call that Bob had died in his hotel room, apparently of heart failure.  As new spread throughout the family, his company, and his friends throughout the world, everyone had the same reaction - no, not Bob.

One of the reasons I haven't been blogging lately is that I got stuck on this.  I needed to write about Bob, but didn't know how, didn't feel I could do him justice.  This is my best shot, and it's not enough.  I enjoyed every minute I spent with him, but ultimately feel there weren't enough minutes.  Thanks for everything, Bob.

Elvis and David Bowie weren't the only ones to have a birthday yesterday.  My brother Bill also had one, and a big one too - 50.  Last weekend, I went to a semi-surprise party (he knew something was afoot, but not how big it would be) at his house in Albany, and it was great to see people from different parts of his life (and my life too).  But the capper was this powerpoint presentation put together by our sister Maryjo.  Enjoy the different hairstyles.

And how old am I, you may ask?  Oh, much, much less than 50.