I am a member of a forum for another hobby. The forum is not very popular and has only 10 - 15 regulars, some drive-bys who need one question answered. One of the three admins was there every day to answer everything. To him, it was not a hobby but a lifestyle and maintaining a tradition.

The admin died suddenly and, when his significant other got home from the hospital, she decided to check his computer, found the emails and let someone from the forum know what happened and left contact info. Without that, we would have never known what happened to our friend.

I say friend, even though I've never met him face-to-face. Strange feeling that I mourn a person I've never met. Even stranger feeling trying to explain my glum attitude.

I am thankful that is significant other bothered to I for us what happened. Without her input, it would be a mystery and different kind of emptiness.

My questions,
(1) How do people get informed of the demise of on-line acquaintances.
(2) How do you tell their families how much you appreciated their friendship?

 

I say friend, even though I've never met him face-to-face. Strange feeling that I mourn a person I've never met. Even stranger feeling trying to explain my glum attitude.

http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/29901.html

"...any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind.
And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls: it tolls for thee."

 

I know exactly how you feel, GopherT. I felt the same way when I learned that BeenThere passed away. I'd never met him in person, and I'd only seen a few of his posts here on the forum, but I still felt grief over his passing. I don't think it's ever anything you get used to.

For a while I was just looking through the threads he participated in. The forums, in a way, keep alive members who have passed away. It's a sort of legacy that they leave behind, and years later people are still learning from them.

Regards,
Matt

 

it effects us all differently. a lot of friends have passed away in the last 5 years, mostly cancer and one a heart attack. doesn't matter how they die, it tears a part out of you that you can never replace.

thoughts with you GopherT and your past acquaintance

Tom

 

I knew that was a strange feeling, about 18 years ago, before the internet start in Taiwan, we always play the bbs, I met a student on bbs, although we knew each other, but usually we didn't talk much, someday in the morning, I was chatting with him, after at night, someone showing the message on bbs that the student was died because an accident, it's really shocked me, also a very strange feeling, a real person, but I never met him in the real world, it seems like a virtual environment.

 

Like DerStrom says, I'm also still learning from "dead people".

 

it effects us all differently. a lot of friends have passed away in the last 5 years, mostly cancer and one a heart attack. doesn't matter how they die, it tears a part out of you that you can never replace.

thoughts with you GopherT and your past acquaintance

Tom

Yes, that's one of the major drawbacks of getting old.
So many good, and not so good; people kick off before you do.

I don't get all tore up over it though, because dying....is the easiest thing you will ever do.
All part of Nature.

A stroke killed me years ago, but I'm too sweet/nice, to stay dead.
I'm like Igor, from the Frankenstein movies.