Scott, you are loved.
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When you're a kid growing up, you see your siblings in a very different light then you do as an adult. The annoying little brother gradually turns into a friend and confidant. You think that there is time to foster that friendship and strengthen that bond - to say things you never really said before - to do things together you may not have done before. But sometimes, things don't happen the way you had planned... and time runs out.
Scott never had it easy. When my sister Kristy was born we all went to the hospital to see her and hold her - take pictures together. Scott was born blue - rushed from our mother's room and taken to Children's Hospital. At the age of three he was diagnosed with a form of eye cancer and had to lose his left eye. All this suffering in only three years of life.
Despite his hardships, Scott plowed forward in life at full speed - leaving the rest of us dizzy in his wake. He was quite often a handful... needing all the resources my parent's could muster and even calling the grandparents in as backup when needed. If Mom kept a tally as to how many times one of us got into trouble, yea... Scott would have won... Though the rest of us did pretty well in our own rights too.
I have to say though, that as I reflected on Scott's life to write this eulogy, it was not the whirl wind of a kid he was but that man he became that keeps coming to mind. The man who never considered himself as particularly smart, yet designed and built from scratch a home for a pet rabbit that had more thought put into its design than most human homes - and was probably far better constructed. His capacity to love and his willingness to give 110% to anyone who needed him far surpassed his grades on any standardized test or exam. Loving with his whole heart came naturally to Scott.
As he helped me to move into my apartment - just the two of us - carrying furniture and boxes up three flights of stairs he never seemed to grow tired and never complained. I'd catch my breath and ask if he could help me take some piece of furniture upstairs - he'd smirk and tell me he'd already brought it up while I was chugging my third bottle of water. He was always the first to volunteer for the hard tasks and would never think of accepting anything in the form of payment. "It's for family" is all he would say.
Scott wanted so much to be a Dad and have a family -- and if you ever wonder what kind of father he would have been, just ask Collin or Brittney. I don't know whose faces lit up more when they came to visit at my parent's house - the kid's or Scott's. Like my Dad, he had a natural love for children and had no problem taking them in his arms - going outside to play - or just vegging out with a game console. Though he was in their lives for a relatively short time, I have no doubt they will always remember with great excitement their Uncle Scott.
I will never know the heart ache Scott felt Sunday morning. I will never know the struggle that he kept hidden behind that charming smile. But I pray that now, as he rests in the healing embrace of Our Lord, that he will finally see himself for the truly remarkable person that he was. I firmly believe with my whole heart that someday - when God calls my name - that Scott will be there learning on the gates to Heaven - and with a hug and a simple: "Hey Mike", I will know that I am home.
