My friend Smith passed away about a week ago and today is the day of his service. Smith and Dorina were regulars at Alexandria Nicole Cellars where my mom and I used to work. They would come in every weekend and we quickly became friends. Eventually I grew to see them kinda like grandparents.
I don’t deal with loss very well. Hell, who does right? Well usually I try to act like nothing happened. Queen of denial. I always just assume things will stay the same and people will be around. But we don’t have all the time in the world and sometimes we miss opportunities to spend time with people we care about before they’re gone. As I write this I can just hear Smith telling me to not worry so much and just enjoy life.
That’s just who Smith was. He lived life his way and all he worried about were the people he cared about. Dorina is the same way. I remember one day my Mom and I were working our bums off in the wine tasting room and hadn’t been able to take a break, when suddenly Smith and Dorina show up with food for us and demand that we take turns in the back eating. You don’t say no to Dorina. They both would constantly tell us to take better care of ourselves.
I had been dating someone for a little while, and Smith would take every opportunity to get the lowdown on my dating life. Real heart to hearts. And like any good pseudo grandpa would, he told me over and over and over not to settle. Every time I saw him he asked if I was happy and to make sure I wasn’t settling. Let’s just say the relationship I was in didn’t last and Smith knew before I admitted it. He was always looking out for me, making sure I was making the right decisions. I’m really going to miss having such a sweet person in my life. He was such a joy to be around.
I’ll miss you Smith.
