Blue

This is, as far as I know, the last photo taken of my brother and me.
The babies are my nephew, Antwyon Jr., and my niece Yana (they are now 19 and 17, respectively, so that tells you how long ago this was taken).

Today would have been Antwyon's 39th birthday.

There aren't enough words in the world to express how hard it is to know that I can't call and wish him a happy birthday, that I won't ever again hear his booming, raucous, infectious laugh, or the almost angry tone in his voice when he'd say "you know, Cherton, I do love you" as if someone somewhere had told him different.

I will just say that I miss him, so intensely and in so many ways it's difficult sometimes to breathe.

And I'll say this: don't wait. Don't assume that you'll always have time to tell the people you love how you feel. Or that they've always been your hero. Or simply, "Hey. I was thinking about you."