A father could never have two more wonderful sons, Mike and Bob. The kind of people they grew up to be are my ultimate accomplishments in life. I can’t imagine anything that could overshadow the pride and satisfaction that I always have felt when I interact with them. I once heard it said that the ultimate payoff as a parent is this: you realize that you like being with your kids because of the kind of people they are, not because they are your kids. With the grace of God, Mary Ann and I raised two wonderful sons.

But in Mike’s case I believe we had extra help. As a preschooler he learned to read from an old first grade reader and from watching Sesame Street, and in first grade he tested at a fourth grade reading level. He was ahead of his time. He always wanted to learn and rarely needed more than a reminder to do his homework. From early on, he showed a maturity ahead of his time.

During adolescence, a remarkable self-discipline began to emerge, along with his unique brand of focused determination that simply got things done. Once, at a high school parents night, his chemistry teacher was telling us what an intelligent and wonderful student Mike was and summed it up with, “God doesn’t make many of those”. She was right - I believe that extra help was divine help. God gave Mary Ann and me a truly special gift when he gave us Mike. We especially realize that now.

He was the perfect kid in so many ways. In high school we always asked Mike and Bob to be home at a certain time and to keep us informed on where they were. We always got the required phone calls and we could almost set our watch by the time Mike got home – he was that punctual.

As parents it’s tough to see your 17-year old kids head off to college 300 or 400 miles away. At that point you must have faith that you’ve imparted a good set of values and that the kids will stick to them. We were never disappointed – in fact Mike and Bob gave us great pride in the way they handled this part of their lives. Both of them have made many close, quality friends, especially Mike because he has been in so many places.

As profoundly sad as his passing was, I was truly gratified when I realized how many people deeply respected and admired Mike. It’s clear that not only was he highly regarded in his field, but he was also highly regarded as a human being. The tributes given by friends and colleagues were absolutely awesome even though some of these people had known him for a relatively short time. I feel he has left us all basking in a marvelous afterglow. May we continue to feel it for the rest of our lives.

Why would God take such a wonderful and talented person from us at his early age? It’s clear we will never understand in this life, but perhaps we will in the next. My cousin Dave Bourne said, “Michael must be so special that God wanted him by his side.” Whatever the reason, God chose Mike to leave this life and move on to his next life. Ahead of his time.

Tom Macon