This morning, I wanted to read the obituaries to see if I knew anyone that had died. "Hey Billy boy, you're not even in your fifties yet!" I don't know why sometimes Kodachrome faces come to mind and I wonder whatever happened to them. Just an old nostalgic fool, I suppose.

I found an obituary site that ran a query based on high school. I equally had as many friends at Bartlett High as I did at my own Bolton High, so I started there.

My memory dinged: Timothy Sere.

I remember him. I instantly thought of a buddy of mine in high school from the summer of '95. We both were in the class of '96. He was a handsome fella and possessed a natural charisma, too. He joked and smiled. Sharing a similar build to my own, he stood about 6'1 and had floppy bangs that added to his resemblance to Creed's frontman Scott Stapp.

Enamored by the pretty, checkout girls with their flirting eyes, we tried our hand at seasoning wit into their small talk while we sacked groceries. Eventually, he would turn checker himself, tossing aside the mandatory apron. I would come to his aid to sack groceries, for it was difficult for a guy to get help. Fully alive with cascading vitality, he was a good guy and would make you walk away with a smile.

I believe he left by the time I returned to work at the grocery after wrestling in January '96. After gifting my Stairway to Heaven MIDI experience, I would leave there, too. College came and the time in that era became a relic. The now Tragic Kingdom of Piggly Wiggly turned to Yourself or Someone Like You at Wolfchase Galleria with the Spice of a Devil Without a Cause.

And Tim became another person who faded into the mists of time. I tend to think about those people as having never changed—isn't he still out there somewhere wearing khakis and a white dress shirt with a tie like I did at Piggly Wiggly? No, that place is NOT the hollow shell I saw in that 2024 walk to Starbucks.

Yes, it was the Tim I knew with the obituary, December 8, 1977 - January 24, 2022.

I nearly no longer recognized him—I had to check Classmates.com's archive of Bartlett High's 1996 yearbook to confirm. It has been a long haul since we were 17; I know at 336 lbs in 2017, I was unrecognizable.

Tim's obituary piece is my all-time favorite. Typically, obituaries are as one-note and boilerplate as a Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich. They cover the basics, but they leave a lingering desire for more. It always comes off as rushed. Next customer! But, for Tim's, well, just look at these excerpts:

Timothy M. Sere, 44, of Arlington, TN, peacefully passed away on Monday, January 24th after injuries sustained while rushing into a burning pet store to save a litter of purring kittens from certain doom. He also had complications from stupid Covid.

...

Before the age of 17, he spent most of his time fighting off adoring young ladies with sticks. When not busy with romantic activities, he devoted himself to his Jedi training and eventually earned the rank of "Almost Not A Nerd". Ultimately, he found his passion for comic books and accepted his "Nerd" persona more completely.

...

All of that said, Tim was most outstanding as a family man. His wife, Jennifer, was the light of his life! She made the first move and invited him on a camping trip with friends. Thankfully, he had an amazing personality because he might have overstated his manly capabilities a bit. By the time Jennifer found out that Tim couldn't bait his own hook, she was already in love. They were married on July 2nd, 2005 and spent the next 17 years building an incredible family together.

...

If you knew Tim, you would know that he didn't like to dress up so please dress comfortably. You can even join in with us and wear a Superhero shirt! He preferred Marvel over DC.

And while I remember the warmth of the guy and its reverberated through his obituary, it seems like this did not happen—how could it? The Tim I knew was full of life and it seems he remained that way. The world feels less without him.

He should be still alive. How can his story be already over? The smoke has yet to clear from the halftime show!

I found his headstone on Find a Grave. Seeing his casket is emotionally deafening. If my carnivore approach didn't come in 2020, that could've been me...

He's now buried in the cemetery behind my childhood home, the same place I lived when I drove that ol' '79 Ford pickup to work up at Piggly Wiggly.