Craig died on Labor Day.
He was one of Jay’s oldest, closest friends. They met over 50 years ago, as music/girl obsessed adolescents. They had fun and bone-headed adventures together; the sort a pair of long haired-hippie-freak bums would have had back in the late 60s and early 70s.
They did some things they shouldn’t have done. Craig got caught but he never ratted Jay out.
They started a band. Jay, who couldn’t play anything, was the singer. Before too long, the rest of band fired Jay because he wasn’t much of a singer, either. He’s never forgiven any of them for that but he has remained close friends with all of them.
In any other junior high class in America at the time, Jay would have been the star of the band: he may not have had a voice but he’s always been a showman and a ball of charisma. Imagine Mick Jagger with a pretty face! (and no dance moves but come on; it was junior high!) That wasn’t good enough for this band. It was just Jay’s bad luck that his classmates/buddies had such high musical standards. Dave, Tommy and Craig were all world class musicians.
Craig did the music at our wedding. He could do a spot on Cat Steven’s impression and at 26 had made the piano his bitch. All my friends were impressed with his rendition of “In My Life”, which was the first time any of them had heard a Beatles’ tune played at a wedding. He also did a magnificent “Ave Maria”, which is Jay’s favorite hymn.
He was an actor, musician, composer and all around performer. He looked like an Irish version of Donny Osmond, with eyebrows so expressive John Belushi would have been jealous.
He was diagnosed with MS shortly after we got married.
When he lost the use of the right side of his body, he learned to play the right-hand keyboard parts with his left, and accompanied the recording of that while playing the left hand part live. When he lost the use of the left side of his body he became a philosopher.
It’s perfectly natural for anyone afflicted by a monster like MS to ask “Why me, God?” I suspect that God answered Craig; I think He told Craig that he would be stronger than he could imagine.
As he became trapped in an unresponsive body, he became not merely a philosopher but a theologian.
What does it profit a man to gain the whole world if he loses his soul? Craig lost the world before he ever had a chance to become rich, successful and addicted to the accumulation of possessions. He considered that a blessing. He considered his whole life a blessing!
There’s a lot I want to write about Craig but I can’t right now. It’s too hard.
He died on Labor Day.
Not an hour after I heard the news, I was driving home and when I turned down 42nd street to Lake Harriet, this is what I saw: