May you be remembered with fondness. May those that loved you in your humanity be brave enough to continue creating a world that is kinder and serves your vulnerable brothers and sisters whether that be through education, art, relationship, advocacy, community events, or public expressions of grief.

I doodled a smiley face on the breakfast tracker sheet half an hour before life gave me a reason to google the biological processes of death. I wanted to know how long he’d been there like that before I found him. I’m now in a vicious staring contest with grief; the pulsing risk of my vocation, more of a guarantee than a risk, really.