Amy Remembers Keith Part II

Here is the second installment of my wife's memories of my brother . . .

Keith really looked up to his big brother Dave. Whenever Dave would tell a joke, Keith would chime in that he was thinking the same thing, or try to get in on the laughter. Keith was such a smart man, he had a brain for facts and figures and dates. He and Dave and their mother would often try to outdo each other with what they knew, but always in good fun. They would mistakenly ask me one of their questions, and after getting a blank stare, move on to someone they knew would answer…each other. Our family spent quite a bit of time with Keith’s family and you could always tell that Keith looked up to his big brother Dave, and with good reason.

Time For Jeopardy

Jeopardy is a family obsession. My Mom has been recording it for years. My brother Chris likes to shout "Bet it all. Bet it all!" everytime A Daily Double is revealed.He also has dubbed the time where Alex Trebek interviews the contestants as "Meet the Geeks." But no one reveled in all things Jeopardy like Keith. He was also the best of the bunch of us at it. When Keith, Chris and My Mom all took the entrance test only Keith got to the next level.

Keith may not have been Ken Jennings, but He found solace in knowing the questions to all the answers. When Keith got sick and eventually died I had plenty of questions and very few answers. But knowing His spiritual condition, that He was a follower of Jesus, I am assured that now he is not in jeopardy.

Memories from the Funeral Part III

My sister Bonnie spoke at the dinner after the funeral. She later shared her remarks on her facebook page. That is where I stole them from . . .

Growing up, Keith was always there for me, taking care of me, and protecting me. I have fond memories of Keith and I waking up real early in the morning and seeing what the Easter Bunny had brought us, or watching “The Great Space Coaster” together which always ended with Keith riding his bike up to the store and buying us both snacks… But, the fondest memory I have of him is during high school. It was my Junior year and I was going through a very hard time. I remember being in my room crying and he carried a tape player in the hallway and played me a song. The lyrics of the song not only cheered me up then, but now, after his death, they still cheer me up. The name of the song is “In a Little While” and I would like to share with you the chorus of the song. They are:

“In a little while we’ll be with the Father Can’t you see Him smile?In a little while we’ll be home forever In a while We’re just here to learn to love Him We’ll be home in just a little while… The words, by Amy Grant, were supposed to encourage me (And they did) because the song is about during tough times, we can remember that we are soon going to be with the Lord in Heaven and we won’t have to cry anymore.

Although Keith’s “little while” came before mine and long before we expected it, I know that like he was encouraging me 18 years ago, Keith is with the Lord now in Heaven.

The International Impact of Keith Part III

The Kostya Rules

When Keith was visiting me in Russia a few of the students from the Russian Baptist Church paid a visit to my apartment. After a while we started playing Yahtzee. I don't think my Russian friends had ever played it before. One of my friends, Kostya kept throwing one of the dice off the table. Now "Roller American Rules" dictate that on such an occasion the entire role must be redone.

For whatever reason Keith initiated the Kostya rules. Kostya could look on the floor and see what the roll was, if he wanted to he could keep it, or he could re-roll. This certainly gives an advantage to the (lower cased) roller.

When I returned to the states Keith and I would often play Yahtzee and we always had to decide whether the Kostya rule was in play or not.

Star Wars, Legos and kids. .

When Keith was 6 and I was 12 a small little movie called Star Wars opened. Like many kids our ages we became passionate about this movie. For me it was writing Basic Programs with Vic Santos about X-Wings and Death Stars. For Keith, it was playing with Star Wars Action Figures with Andy Nover.

Keith was also very fond of legos as a child. He was an excellent lego maker and had quite the imagination.

Classics never go out of style and my Son Charlie is also passionate about Star Wars and Legos. Charlie started his own Blog Recently entitled Homeschool Jedi Apprentice. Two of his most recent posts combine Legos and Star Wars. One is a video of a battle between clones and droids and the other are just photos of same.

I see a lot of Keith in his children, Bobby and Sara. But I also see a lot of Keith, in my own children and all children. In some ways (mostly good) Keith never stopped being 6 and his passion for games and toys gave him an ability to communicate with kids on their level. He may have been a child a long time ago but when it came to relating to children He was never in a galaxy far far away.