Someday

I am forced to come out of my self-imposed burnout break from blogging for one more blog. Tonight my body is in Houston TX but my heart is with some special folks back in Reynolds GA.

The death angel has hit again. I got more news today that rocked my world. Julian Knight, my long-time friend and Mayor of Reynolds, died suddenly last night of a heart attack.

Julian moved to Reynolds with Flint EMC over 35 years ago. I know it has been at least that long because the first time I met him he was umpiring church league softball games at the Reynolds ball field. I was in high school then so I know it has been more than 35 years. He told me he quickly realized that church folks can be rough on an umpire. He had to choose whether he would give up umpiring or give up church. He gave up umpiring.

When I got the news early this morning of his death, my mind went back to the last time I saw him or at least had a meaningful conversation with him. We sat together at a Westfield football game in the fall. He was there supporting his grandchildren. I was there supporting our niece. We laughed, told stories and reminisced during the entire game.

We lived two doors down from the Julian Knight family for about 10 years during the late seventies and eighties. We vacationed together a couple of times and spent many nights visiting in each other’s dens and eating at each other’s table. The Knight girls babysat our boys on many occasions and our kids played together just about every day.

Julian even went on a few death calls with me.

We were in the mountains one summer on vacation when Julian woke me up in the middle of the night telling me he thought someone was trying to break in our cabin. We never found the culprit but I slept with a fire poker beside me that night.

We always laughed about that experience. I never let him forget it.

I was at his home for the victory party the night he was first elected to the City Council. He was worried about winning because at that time he considered himself an outsider since he was not raised in Reynolds. He won easily but there was no way at that time to know the contribution he would make to the City of Reynolds for the next 20 years or so.

One thing is for sure. He was not an outsider when he breathed his last breath Sunday night.

Julian was business smart but he was also street smart. He brought common sense and great leadership to a small town government that can sometimes be rather hectic and challenging. He could be a man of few words but when he spoke people listened. He had earned the respect from people from all walks of life as a public servant. He was a man of integrity and people did not have a hard time noticing that in whatever he happened to be doing - whether it was as a Senior Manager at Flint Energies, or running a city government or volunteering for various civic activities or teaching Sunday school at the First Baptist Church.

Julian Knight left an indelible print on the town in which he lived. There is no doubt Reynolds lost one of its finest yesterday.

But more importantly, some very special folks lost a beloved husband, dad, granddad and brother. I’m not in town and I haven’t seen them yet but I can guarantee you those special folks are having trouble getting their breath tonight.

The book of Ecclesiastes says a good name is better than fine perfume and the day of death better than the day of birth.

Julian definitely had the good name but the second part of that sure is difficult to see sometimes from where we sit.

Maybe someday we will understand.