Near Friend Passing

Do you have near friends in your life?

Near friends, you ask? You know.... those people with whom you felt a connection, or found yourself interested in getting to know, but for some reason didn't, people that had you met them at another time, place, stage of life or under different circumstances could have become dear friends, but as it turnd out were simply only near friends.

One of my near friends passed away unexpectedly recently. We met my very first semester in grad school, and then, after sharing space for a brief time, went our own ways, saying hey as we passed in the halls on our way to office hours or to the cofee cart. In the end he was no more than an acquaintance. He never really had a place in my world, so his absence won't be significant, to me. But for someone (maybe for lots of someones)he was their whole world, and for them, I grieve his passing.