No Half Measures

I had dinner with dear friends yesterday evening. They have been stalwart, fun, loving, good people who have tended to my heart long before Bryan passed and in the year and half since have continued to do so. We get to talk about what’s current, what’s coming, and fondly reminisce about what was. Bryan naturally filters in as topic of conversation from time to time. It was in this context that I get reminded of things he taught me, taught us. Don’t live by half measures. Be full of passion for everything that interests you.

Bryan was a man of strong opinions, a loud voice, and a whole lot of energy and conviction. He could fill a room with all of that. And if a person weren’t braced or prepared they could be easily bowled over by it all. What was at his core, however, was a need for push back and the dynamic of intelligent exchange. He longed for the refinement of his ideas and opinions or the open window into a new world of ideas he hadn’t considered before.

Even now, in my solitude, I am lifted and filled by his memory. I’m still learning from him. I am better for all of who he was and still is in my heart. I miss him so much. I’m so glad he lives in the space shared between friends, in the strong, brave voice of my daughter, in my own determination not to live by half measures.