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I saw in the paper today that a guy I went to college with was killed a few days ago in a housefire (most likely the result of arson).
His name was Charles Liegel Jr. But everyone called him CJ. He was my age. About six months younger, actually. We were never really close. But we had a few classes together and we were both active in student government. He was handsome, smart, friendly. But mostly he was kind. The sort of guy who'd give you the shirt of his back if you needed it. It wasn't a big school but it was big enough that not everybody knew everybody. But everybody knew CJ. He was just that kind of guy. Once you met him you never forgot him. I remember when I first met him, he was a bit homophobic, but he had the insight to realize that homophobic wasn't something he wanted to be. He worked really hard to change his attitude and I like to think I had something to do with that. I remember one time he decided that a good way get over his homophobia would be to let a gay guy grab his ass. Sadly, he didn't choose me for the honor. That went to my friend Tom. You wouldn't think a guy as big and tough as CJ could be that wussy when it came right down to it, but he eventually took it uh...manfully.
I hadn't thought about CJ in years. We both transferred to different schools after a year. But like I said, once you knew CJ you never really forgot him. I caught his picture in the paper out of the corner of my eye and it all came rushing back. He was such a vibrant presence and now he's gone. It makes me sad.
His name was Charles Liegel Jr. But everyone called him CJ. He was my age. About six months younger, actually. We were never really close. But we had a few classes together and we were both active in student government. He was handsome, smart, friendly. But mostly he was kind. The sort of guy who'd give you the shirt of his back if you needed it. It wasn't a big school but it was big enough that not everybody knew everybody. But everybody knew CJ. He was just that kind of guy. Once you met him you never forgot him. I remember when I first met him, he was a bit homophobic, but he had the insight to realize that homophobic wasn't something he wanted to be. He worked really hard to change his attitude and I like to think I had something to do with that. I remember one time he decided that a good way get over his homophobia would be to let a gay guy grab his ass. Sadly, he didn't choose me for the honor. That went to my friend Tom. You wouldn't think a guy as big and tough as CJ could be that wussy when it came right down to it, but he eventually took it uh...manfully.
I hadn't thought about CJ in years. We both transferred to different schools after a year. But like I said, once you knew CJ you never really forgot him. I caught his picture in the paper out of the corner of my eye and it all came rushing back. He was such a vibrant presence and now he's gone. It makes me sad.
