Happy Birthday Mark!!

Today would have been my brother Mark’s 64th birthday.  He passed away at the very young age of 24.  Mark and I were very close when we were young children, we seemed to have a special bond.  When our parents divorced he was in his early teens and his life went into a tailspin.  He was a lost soul who didn’t know where he belonged.  After the divorce mother moved back to her hometown in Illinois taking Mark and our sister Linda with her.  He was not happy in Illinois and moved back to Texas to be with his father, who didn’t have time for him.  He lived with my new husband and myself for a semester, did poorly in school and dropped out and hit the road.  He wanted to be a musician and he was very talented.  He went to Colorado for a few years, even became a sheriff’s deputy!  When he returned to Texas he lived in Austin and hooked up with Willie Nelson’s band and became a gaffer (not sure what that was).  He became ill with what he thought was the flu, and slipped into a coma.  We found out that he had an infection in his heart, and a leaking valve.  For some reason heart surgery could not be performed.  After three weeks and a couple of massive heart attacks he finally passed away.  He was so very young and in those few short years had badly abused his body with drugs and alcohol.  I often wonder if times had been different what he would have done with his life and his talent.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARK!