Sean is gone. I remember that these were the words in the sole text message I received from my sister Kath, at 10:48pm on November 18, 2016, the day her son, my nephew, passed away at age 27. That was it, nothing else said. Sean is gone. This is what I will always remember. I loved Sean, he was my very own sister’s child, he was my nephew. He was Sean-ie.

Sean is gone. These are the words that haunt me four years after Sean’s passing. These are the words that I will remember for the rest of my life. Sean is gone.

These personally haunting words are nothing to what my sister lives with every day of her life. Sean was Kath’s child. Sean was her first-born. Sean was like every other kid…troubled in his own way, yet learning how to navigate his own internal challenges in every day life. We all have had similar challenges.

I remember just a few months before Sean’s passing, our entire family had a get-together at Kath’s house. Sean, his sister Marisa, and others were swimming in the pool and having a great time. I did not know at that time that this would be the last time I would ever speak with my sister’s son, Sean.

Sean is gone, in the physical sense. But Sean is not truly gone as his son, Noah is here as a gift/blessing to us, as a reminder that Sean is still alive in us all.

Sean…you screwball silly guy! You have stopped giving your mom grief. You have grown up. You are the young man that we always knew you would be. You have taught many, even if you did not know it. You have achieved more in your life than you think you could have ever achieved.

Sean, you are not truly gone. You Sean, are merely at a different level in the cycle of life that many of us on earth are currently waiting to achieve. Thank you Seanie. Thank you, for you have taught many people during your time on Earth, the tons of valuable life lessons! I love you Seanie-boy!

Love, Uncle rude.