Sad

Today I left work early to attend a funeral.
A good friend of ours, who happened to be our real estate agent, passed away late last week.
I wrote a long post about what he meant to me, about why it makes me so sad to say goodbye. He was a good man, a man who cared about a great many people.
I introduced Phat Daddy to him last year when we were purchasing our first real home. And, he instantly understood what made this man so special.
Instead of forcing us to make a decision on our home, he told us he would pray for us.
As we jumped many many hurdles to get into the place we now call home (including the sale of our condo falling through the day we were supposed to close), while everyone around us, lawyers included, freaked out and I was just generally hysterical, I called him to ask for advice, and he told me calmly "this is the time you have to learn to trust God. This will work out."
The thing is, of all the many pieces of advice I got, his was really the only one we could take.
He checked in a few times over the past year. The thing is, he never asked for a referral. He just wanted to see how we were fitting into the community. He'd ask about our family (he's known me since I was 4).
A few weeks before Christmas he stopped by to wish us a merry Christmas. He was thrilled to find me home on a weekday, and delighted when I told him I was pregnant.
As he left he gave me a big hug, and said he was so happy to see our family happy and thriving. That was our last conversation. I found out this morning that he'd passed away at the end of last week.
The funeral I attended today was a testament to a man who cared about people more than he cared about business. And, as sad as I was to attend, it was such a wonderful tribute to someone who made a huge difference in so many lives.
I left realizing that at the end of the day what matters more than anything is loving and caring for the people around you. I hope that someday I can make as much of a difference in the lives of people around me as he did.