It wasn't always pretty.

He'd do the lindy to Jimi Hexndrix.

amphetamines

he commandeered the floor

he stumbled inexplicably

startle

zapped

Is it terminal?

pamphlet

theology

hobble

limp husk

sword

wither up

Do I wither up and disappear, or do I make the best of my time left?

narrat the trip

beaker

sequoia

And all the heartfelt things we never get to say to those we love.

His "living funeral" was a rousing success.

The years after graduation hardened me into someone quite different from the strutting graduate who left capus that day headed for New York City, ready to offer the world his talent.

reading classifieds

I watched his strong body wither, then bloat, saw him suffer, night after night, doubled over at the dinner table, pressing on his stomach.

I was not only penning columns

I was sprouting my opinions on rich football players and hyprocritical college sports program.

build a portfolio

I was cranked to a fifth gear

to the snow-covered curb outside my house

am I going to witherdraw from the world

composure

Koppel seemed extremely taken with Morrie.

He asked about the humility that death induced.

insidious decay

went numb