Gone.

There are, very sadly, a variety of people from school life who are now no longer with us.  Such is the statistical inevitability of getting older.  The first was L who died suddenly soon after having left junior school.  I remember her as being one of the girls who 'acted' a scene to Joplin's Entertainer as I played it in the school hall.  Another was A who died of cystic fybrosis.  I remember him from being in the 'support team' on a scouts bike ride to Belgium.  Another was K who died in the Hillsborough Disaster.  We weren't friends and I have a variety of regrets about the way I felt about him before it happened.  I remember him - the day after it happened there was a band practice at school and there were many many tears.  We only just got through 'you'll never walk alone' at the memorial.  Another was R.  A fellow Star Wars nerd and a lumbering but jovial presence.  He died of cancer quite recently.  Another was C.  She played the bassoon and was a leading, friendly figure from school musical life.  She and I went to the same Uni.  I remember how pleasantly surprised I was when she came running over and hugged me on my first day.  We went to a James Brown concert together.  Another was K.  She was a crushes' best friend, intelligent, well liked and bafflingly dating J - the most datable guy in the year - they ended up marrying and having children.  She died suddenly and was remembered fondly at a school reunion a few years ago.  The crush can't go and see the children - they remind her too much. 

So sad.   Such is life.  Good to remember.  Right to do so. 

A friend, S, dated two of the girls on this list.  In a lighter moment he was wondering whether he was the 'black widow' of the year!