1. At the request of Stu and Sue and with Sally's blessing, I served as the host/master of ceremonies for today's Celebration of Life for Bruce Larsen. I was much more nervous about hosting this celebration than I was when I officiated services for Aunt Lila, Mom, Everett, or Don Knott primarily because the other services were more traditional. I had a podium to stand behind. I didn't have to hold the microphone. Those who attended were sitting in neat rows and it was all familiar to me.
Today's gathering was more informal. I hoped it would go all right. (It did!)
So, I came to the Lodge about an hour before things got underway and I made sure that the microphone was working and that I could hold the microphone, speak into it, and scroll the text on my tablet all at the same time. I find it easier to read from a tablet when I don't have a podium (as was the case when I officiated weddings for Scott and Cate, Julie Fether, and Taylor and Cosette) and I discovered, much to my relief, that I could hold the mic, speak, and scroll at the same time (I can also walk and chew gum) and so that helped calm my nerves.
2. The turnout for celebrating of Bruce's life was terrific. The room was nearly full. Over two dozen members of the KHS Class of '72 were in attendance, along with other people from Bruce's life in Kellogg. Sally (Bruce's soulmate and partner for over 27 years) was well supported by her son and an excellent showing of people who came over from Spokane/Spokane Valley where they were Bruce and Sally's friends.
We spent most of our time this afternoon socializing while enjoying drinks from the bar and a fine spread of food provided by Kellogg's own establishment, Nocturn.
We took a break from socializing and I kicked off a time of tributes and a toast at 1:15 by reading a condensed version of Bruce's obituary and then opening the floor to anyone who wanted to speak about Bruce. Lifelong friends Terry Turner, Scott Stuart, and Ron Jacobs reflected on Lars' life as did a great friend of his from the Spokane area, Dan Love.
I then read Roger Pearson's superbly written tribute to Bruce, a terrific encapsulation of Bruce's life as a youngster in the uptown Kellogg neighborhood he lived in, at Lincoln School, and at the YMCA.
Roger wrote a great story about Bruce and Terry Turner the night Idaho State defeated UCLA in the 1977 NCAA men's basketball tournament and brought his tribute into the 2020s with a touching account of two rounds of golf, including playing with Bruce in a tournament in Oregon which turned out to be the last time Bruce and Roger saw each other.
I ended this part of the afternoon with a toast to Lars and then the whole room broke back into socializing and enjoying reunions and taking pictures, including one of about two dozen members of our high school graduating class.
3. Many of us crowned this great afternoon of being together by heading straight across McKinley Ave. to The Lounge.
The good vibes continued as groups of friends yakked with each other at tables and others yakked in smaller groups at the bar. I went back and forth between one of the tables and the bar and even found a little bit of time to yak one to one with Cas.
I remained faithful to my post-transplant decision not to drink alcohol, but I'd say today was the most challenging non-alcohol day in the two years since the transplant. I would have loved to have joined my friends for a beer or a cocktail (although drinking a Bud Zero worked just fine) and I would have enjoyed enhancing my relief with a shot or two of Pendleton Rye or a can of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, relief that things went so well and that my low-grade anxiety about this day had disappeared.
But, you know, I really do want the medication I take to ward off organ rejection to work unimpeded more than I want to drink alcohol and it's always good when I leave The Lounge to know I'm driving unimpaired.
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