The best way to remember someone

Ric Flair defended his NWA World Heavywieght Title in 1982 against Playboy Buddy Rose at Seattle Center in what became known as Mercer Arena. It was a great match. it was a great card with Buzz & Hack Sawyer and Chris Adams and Rip Oliver and others. We had seats only seven rows back.

During the card we crept forward to the aisle and when Flair was bleeding and out of the ring he was within arms reach on the other side of a roped off ringside area.  Flair briefly made eye contact with me.

My aunt and uncle took me, my bro, and at least one other cousin that night.  It was a school night.

The next couple years the family loaded up, one time on seriously short notice, and headed back into town to the same venue for pro wrestling cards. The combinations changed a bit and we even got my dad to go once. But, there were two constants; my brother and my uncle.

When someone passes away I believe you not only lose the person, but also your routine or things you do with that person. The loss of the person is part of life that we all come to grips with in different ways, but we understand.  The second one is where our grief hits.  The loss of routine or activities is where we feel the loss again and again.

Whenever I see Ric Flair, still involved in pro wrestling after all this time, I will always think back on the time I got to see him back in the day with my family, and I will miss my uncle again.