If there’s any time to get a reminder of one’s mortality, it is at the time of one’s anniversary of being born.

In four hours, I will have lived for 23 years upon this Earth. That alone is enough to make me wistful, but then I got a call from Anthony around an hour ago …
“Hey man, did Todd call you this afternoon?”

“No. Why?”

“Guess you haven’t heard then. Frenchy died playing roller this afternoon. Had a heart attack and was gone.”

[pause] “Damn.”

Anthony and I talked for a while, about a variety of things. [Ant-Dawg, I still think you should be sane and just switch to ISE.] But I can’t stop thinking about Frenchy.

For the most of you, you will never have met or even heard of Jean-Marc Plante before reading this. Frenchy was a star of UAH’s hockey past, the team’s current marketing guru, and a really, really great guy. I’ve had the opportunity to work with Frenchy professionally and hang out with him personally, and I’ve always, always enjoyed that opportunity. I have found few men who have more love for the UAH Hockey program than Jean-Marc does.

Did.

Well, still does, I guess. His soul lives on, even if only in the memory of those who knew and loved him. I can’t fairly say that I loved Frenchy any more than I do any other of my fellow human beings, but what I knew, I couldn’t help but have an affinity for.

If I can’t believe he’s gone, I can’t imagine how the boys feel right now. I ran into Igor [Karlis Zirnis, UAH's wonderkind winger from Riga, Latvia] at Big Spring Jam tonight. I was with the kids from church, and Igor was working. I shook his hand and embraced him, as I am wont to do with most of the boys. I asked him if he was working; he noted that he was and offered me some free beer if I’d follow him. I laughed, explained who I was with, and thanked him. The boys know what I do with church, and they have the utmost of respect for it.

UAH’s and Huntsville’s hockey community is pretty tight. With Frenchy’s loss, it should be tighter still.

Bon voyage, mon ami.