GONE TO HEARTS EVERYWHERE

Can anyone here tell me what happened to my ol' friend John?

John lived from 1917 to 22 November 1963 with a great deal of verve and humor and intelligence. I had read his book, Profiles in Courage, in early high school, so I knew that he was an intellectual force, or rather that he himself respected intelligence and the courageous belief that the human mind could devise solutions to problems. John had courage.

He also introduced me, because he read them, to a new author, Ian Fleming and his fictional British spy, James Bond. John had style.

I can tell you where I was that afternoon at around 1 p.m. on a Friday when our school principal announced that John was dead. I was in the Central City [Kentucky] High School library with my girlfriend, Diann Wright. She can tell you that I presciently said to her that we would always remember where we were at that laden moment. Because at that instant, the world changed and we changed. We had to live thereafter in a heavier world feeling vacant without John. John had presence.

Can you tell me where he's gone?

John has gone to hearts everywhere. Those hearts, some of whom cried today, can only hope to emulate his courage, style, and presence.