I wish I knew him better through his first accident.

I knew him, of course, but he had broken up with me the day before his accident so I wasn't very close to him through his recovery. I visited him a few times from what I can remember in the hospital and at the rehab center. I wrote in the journals that were kept for him that his family and friends wrote in. And then I remember that he wanted me to call him once he was back at home. So I did and we just talked... and that was it.

I almost feel like I didn't fully appreciate all that he overcame because I wasn't there. I knew him and I knew that he escaped death but I now continue to hear more details about the challenges he faced and I just wish I would have told him more often how miraculous he was. I wish I had known more. I wish I had asked him more.

I know we had moments together where we read back through those journals and talked about details of the accident and his recovery. I guess I just never stopped and really thought about it.

After that phone call that summer, I think I ran into him at a couple of parties and then we ended up in the same math class his senior year (my junior year). After that, I went to pay him a visit at Aquinas my senior year and after that, I paid him another visit when he transferred to Grand Valley my freshman year in college. And after that... I think that's when we actually started hanging out again during my sophomore year and it didn't take long for us to pick up where we left off in high school (before we had broken up). :)

I remember asking him about his recovery a little bit that first time we met for coffee. Then the topic of the conversation quickly turned to music. And we frequently discussed it after that but not as in-depth as I'm now wishing we would have.

I just feel like there was more to know. Maybe he didn't really remember all the details. Maybe he just didn't think about it like I did because it was all normal to him. I did know a lot about the struggles he overcame though... I should have asked him more. I could have appreciated him more.