Remembering Loved Ones

Jason & Melissa – Heroes, that’s what this is all about, isn’t it? Heroes. Someone who looks at the world and says it should be better, it will be better. And by God, they make it better. Jason Roberts is one of my heroes. He was… man, he was the best cousin; the best friend; the best hero a guy could have. Jason was diagnosed with CF at an early age. Way back then, the early eighties, y’know forever ago, they didn’t give folks much of a shelf life when they received this particular memo. Jason though, he looked back at life, didn’t blink and said “let me show you how it’s done”. Jason was always at the hospital or camp. He was on his nebulizer, or he was taking his medication, or he was getting better or over something. But he was never defined by these things; they were just things he had to do. He lived! He met Melissa, got married, Quentyn came along and Jason showed us how to be a dad and a husband. The last time I spoke with Jason, I had called our grandmother to wish her merry Christmas (they live in Idaho and I had relocated to Las Vegas). After all the customary phone greetings and holiday wishes were exchanged, our grandma said Jason wanted to speak with me. She handed him the phone and all he said was “I love you”. I told him I loved him too, merry Christmas and I’d talk to him soon. I hung up and looked at my wife at the time and I said to her, “Jason must know he’s going soon”. Sadly, not too long after he did join Melissa. I miss him…quite a bit actually. But here’s the thing, he was a huge part of my childhood, and his enthusiasm for life influenced and encouraged me, even today so many years later. He is a part of everything I do. Whenever the remedial garbage of life gets me down, or I get frustrated I think of Jason. I think of everything he did in the amount of time he had and I get mad at myself. I dust off the nonsense, and I get back into the fray. I dedicate this book to my hero, Jason, because to this day he inspires me, he motivates me, he encourages me. “I love you too”. 

– Donovan Petersen