Oh, man, this guy.
You'd have liked him. Everyone liked him. He was that kind of guy; it didn't matter where you sat politically or personally, where your faith lay or your doubt pricked, you would have liked him because he was That Guy. You didn't have to agree with where he stood. He was the one who didn't talk the talk. He walked the walk.
I'm pretty sure that he would have walked every step of that barefoot and bleeding if it mean giving his shoes to someone in need. And that's as literal as it is metaphorical. To paraphrase a Who thing that will always stick with me: who he was is where he stood, and where he stood was where he would fall.
He didn't just believe. He knew.
Jim Hatch.
Say his name, please.
Today my oldest sister is laying her husband to rest, and that breaks my heart more than the idea that he's gone. And I know that sounds...wrong...but he was a man of faith, deep abiding faith, and that faith--the path that he walked with certainty--leads him into his reward. I believe that. That doesn't mean I'm not upset. I am, but more for the loves he left behind, my sister, their kids, grandkids, the people whose lives he touched every single day.
Jim Hatch was a good man. He was the sort of man that you feel is owed more years on this earth than he got; he got almost 83 years, and yet it still feels too short. It feels short because he wasn't in my sister's life nearly long enough; they were married for over 25 years, but it feels like it should have been more.
No idea what was going on, but it made me laugh.
It still makes me smile.
And she should have had many, many more years with him. He brought light into her life, became a father to her children, and was just...amazing.
I will truly miss every post he made on Facebook that I didn't agree with; I will ache for those that I did.
Jim Hatch was truly a really great guy.
I will always feel like he didn't get enough time, my sister didn't get enough time, but holy fark am I grateful for the time they did have together.
Whatever your bent--prayers of faith, thoughts, mojo--please offer it up for my sister Mary today. I can't fathom her loss. I can't wrap my head around it. But please, do it for her, in her name and in his name.
Seriously, guys, if anyone is going to hear "Well done" at the Pearly Gates, it's Jim.
6 comments:
Hugs and purrs to your family.
For Jim Hatch. For Mary Hatch.
I raise a Parting Glass
https://youtu.be/BSHAQZVLlqY
Oh, Thump. I am so sorry, and I promise, Jim and Mary will be remembered in our prayers today.
And the poem, that was lovely (and made Ian tear up.)
"So he lived in faith and hope and love
And traveled the path of which he spoke
He lived and he served with his heart in his hands
He offered his friendship and did not judge
Because his faith was bigger than himself
Because he did more than hope
He knew"
What a wonderful man to have inspired that. I am truly happy that your sister had him in her life, even if there weren't enough days.
Remembering Jim and Mary today.
Joan Ryan
What a beautiful tribute. You are all in my thoughts.
Oh man, that poem is one of the greats. I think folks like Jim are sent to not only make the world a better place, but to make the people around them aspire to be better people. My condolences.
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