That hot saturday afternoon when I arrived at my sister's apartment, I found him sitting on the back steps looking out at the little lake which accentuated the landscaped grounds.

He had just turned 25 on that day; and, I noticed that he had gained some weight; not a bad thing for one who had been ungainly thin during so many of his adolescent years.

Now he had grown into a right good looking young man,
tall, muscular and blond.

He said they had gone to the store. "They" being understood to be my sister, Beverly, and her daughter, Deborah. We were having a birthday party and some last minute things were needed.

Then Beverly and Deborah came; followed by Deborah's daughter, Jennifer and little Amber, Deborah's grandaughter by her son, Chad; and, the birthday party began.

There was ice cream and cake. The rest of it consisted of bacon and tomato sandwiches. As Beverly's birthday was just a few days away, this was her birthday too; and, she had a "hankering" for bacon and tomato sandwiches.

Danny had one of those styrofoam coolers with fruit in it soaking in some kind of liquor. He offered some of it to us; but, none of us were interested. We were all raised without alcohol and could well do without it.

Danny had been raised without alcohol too;
but, his friends had taught him to "party."

*

He was not a drunk, just a social drinker. He liked to get with a bunch of people, drink and have a "good time."

*

Jennifer mentioned a friend of hers who had recently attempted suicide; and, Danny declared how stupid that was.

Deborah told him "But you are committing suicide slowly every day." By this she meant partying, drinking, sometimes driving afterwards; it was understood. Danny just shrugged his shoulders. "When you die, you die."

Eventually, our party ended and we all went our separate ways.

That next day at five in the morning, I received a call. Danny had been killed while drag racing at one of his parties.

*

If there is a moral to this story, I will leave it up to you.

Amber with her Uncle Danny

A tribute to my parents