I'm feeling very sad.

I just received news that the man my mom used to date died this evening. They went out for a couple of years, and I really came to love this guy. I posted a good long while back, asking if people ever see other people as parental type figures. Dick was the first and only guy my mom saw after my dad died, and I came to see Dick as a fatherly figure. He was a lot like my own dad, and he was just special to me. I was sad when he and my mom stopped going out, but that didn't make me lose any respect for him. He was still very vibrant, and I think he could see Mom sliding downhill. I'm sure it was hard for him to see her start sliding, and it would have been unfair of us to expect him to stay with her as she continued her cognitive decline. I tried to speak to him every time I saw him, just to reinforce that I still cared for him. I saw him in his car on Sunday, and now I only wish I would have stopped him and said, "Hi." I really loved Dick. I can't believe how sad I am about this.

I guess I'm not that damaged, after all. Because I sobbed when I heard.

Thanks be to God for Dick's life, and for all he was to those around him. He'll be missed.