Hello,
I keep drafting this post and it doesn't seem to write itself well no matter how I draft it, so I'll just come out and say it. My uncle, Verble Gherulous passed away on December 8, 2021. One day after his 80th birthday.
While he was really a private person, I know that he had a few good friends from his Twitter time, and I hope that they know that he really enjoyed his interaction with them. He actually encouraged me to get more on social media as a way to grow as a poet, and some of those friends are now mine.
For anyone who didn't know him: he was an avid reader and audiophile, of the kind that you don't see any more these days. He hated ebooks, preferred to read physical books, and he truly despised streaming music platforms. He constantly bemoaned the rise of Apple and how it killed the album.
He is survived by his wife, his two children from that marriage, 3 children from previous marriages, plus 2 step-children from his second wife. And even though he often said that most of his contemporaries had already passed away, I hope he knew that he was indeed loved by all those who had the chance to know him.
Over the years, he and I had worked on this blog, swapping ideas for stories, plays, comedy sketches, and just general goofing around. He always had the vision of the Café as a place where people could come and swap ideas, but that never really took off, and I know that kind of made him a bid sad. It was kind of a chess game, he'd knock off an idea and I'd try to flesh it out. And while over the past year or so, he worked on it less and less frequently, but I plan to keep up the blog in his memory.
My uncle was a Christian, in the best way. Even though these last few years, he seemed to be saddened by his own aging and the decline of the state of the world, he held onto his faith and that gave him great comfort. I know that he is now in Heaven, and all this earthly pain is behind him. And I know that he is at peace.
I love you, Uncle Verb.
MR
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