Randy

Now...I wrote this back on February 20, 2008 and posted it awhile back on MySpace but thought I'd re-post it here, after reading it today. Just kinda made me sad all over again, I guess.

Well…my Mom just called to let me know Randy Railey passed away today. Randy was one of my Mom’s oldest, and dearest, friends having been married to my Mom’s OLDEST friend, Marsha, for God knows how long. I can remember being like 7 or 8 and going to visit them, if that gives you any indication. Today was his 56th birthday too. His kidneys had shut down and he was jaundiced really bad too…they initially were going to take him off of life support tomorrow, but his daughters decided to do it today as their last gift to him. He would have wanted and appreciated that because he was always a very no-nonsense kind of guy. He pretty much attacked life head on and would have wanted to attack life-after the same way. He told you how it was, or at least how HE saw it, even if it wasn’t what you wanted to hear…at least you would always get the truth and what you needed to hear. I was surprised by how sad it made me to hear about it…I knew their plans and knew it would happen today, but it still struck me deeper than I had imagined or prepared for.

Randy was always very good to me. When I was young, he never treated me like a “kid” so much as others did…he talked to me straight up and in the eye, which has always earned my respect from others. When I enlisted in the US Army, I don’t think anyone was any more proud of me than he was, save for my Mom and my Granny. He taught me a lot in the time between signing into the DEP and actually shipping off to boot camp. He had gone to military schools growing up and knew the inner workings of such things. He taught me how to keep moving forward full-force but never standing out too much…in basic that can get your head cleared in a hurry. LOL He taught me that if I truly wanted the most out of the military, volunteer for everything (such as schools) I could, that’s pretty much what I did, and yes…I got the most out of it. He taught me how to break down an M16 and a 9mm before I ever got to Ft. Jackson or Ft. Bragg for training. He also taught me how to march properly, stand at attention, parade rest, turn, and about-face long before ever having to actually do it for a DS. It was immensely helpful to me and I always loved him for it because he obviously cared enough for me to devote so much of his own time to help me.

Randy loved his beer and hell…he’d smoke a little grass every so often too…but that doesn’t change or affect the person he was. I wish I could have told him thank you just one last time. It would have meant something to me to know he really did understand it. So, I am left with saying it here…thank you, Randy. You will be missed.