This has been a sad day for me. I don't have too many of them, but every now and then a sense of mourning comes over me.

I miss my brother. He was my big brother, a year and a half older than I, right to the day. When we were kids, many people thought we were twins...we looked alike and we acted quite a bit alike. We had the same kind of a sense of humor, we enjoyed many of the same things.

He wasn't passed when he was in 4th grade, so I caught up with him and we went through the rest of our school years together. I always said it was such a shame that the best lookin guy in the class was my brother, but it did open the doors for the other girls to seek my friendship.

Fred was a funny guy...he loved to laugh. He was a big tease as well, practical jokes were his speciality. He was especially fond of kids. He was very athletic..good at all sports, and he loved to fish.

After high school, he joined the Navy...ya never saw a more handsome dude in uniform.

We kept in pretty close touch as the years went by. He would come home often to visit Mom. No matter how long it was between visits, we always seem to fall into that comfortable place that brothers and sisters share when he did come home.

I was lucky enough to visit him a couple of weeks before he died. He knew he was dying and was totally prepared. He told me he had no regrets and he was grateful for the wonderful life he had.

Truth be told, his life was not that easy, but he worked hard and died a successful, well liked and respected man.
That's quite an accomplishment for a kid from the poor side of the tracks.

There's not a day goes by that I don't think of him...some days its for just a moment, and once in awhile, its like today...I just haven't been able to get him out of my mind.

I wish he was here to share memories with me, to enjoy the peace and contentment I've found here on the hill, to bring his family to play with my family....oh how I wish........