Thursday, October 3, 2024
Dan the man. I knew him as a cousin, but he was the closest thing to a brother that I ever had. Almost my entire childhood centered around paling around with the Carters either at Grandma Jo and Captain's house or in the enchanted woods behind Aunt Trudy's home. Dan was protective, compassionate, kind, and had an amazing sense of humor, which was often lost on me, his way too serious cousin. Thankfully, he could bring out the silly side in me. Dan and I spent way too many hours playing Nintendo together. Once we beat Super Mario Brothers 3 for the trillionth time, we got the great idea to try to play it while lying upside down.
However, that makes all the buttons work in reverse. I think we spent more time laughing than playing that day. Dan was way better than me at Nintendo, but never let on, making me feel just as important on our two player team even though he was squashing way more mushrooms than I could ever dream of. He was selfless and humble, never needing to be the center of attention. And when it came to Mortal Combat, Dan taught me all the cheat codes even though that meant now I had a slight chance to hold my own in the match. But usually we just teamed up together against the bad guys. Dan was as loyal as anyone I've ever known. And Dan never complained. Dan knew how to take the lemons that life handed him and make lemonade. I'm beyond thankful that he was a very sweet spot in my childhood. I will miss him greatly.
