I'm really upset about it. It's really weird because I have never experience someone close to me dying before. My grandparents died when I was really young. Before I can remember. My other grandparents lived in Italy so I never really knew them. This is the first time I have lost someone I really considered a friend.
It's so bizarre. I was talking to him on Friday before I left to go home. I told him to have a good weekend. I'm still in shock. We found out at work yesterday. Jesus, the atmosphere all day was so grim. I know this sounds like a cliche thing to say after someone dies, but everyone loved him. Just a friendly guy who loved to talk and joke around with everyone. If there is one guy in the whole warehouse whose death would affect everyone, it's him. It was impossible to dislike him. Everyone was devastated. The department he worked in closed for the day and everyone else on his team were allowed to go home for the day. A few other people who were really upset went home for the day. Everyone else just on autopilot the whole day. Just drifting past each other, not saying a word.
Work will not be the same. When I first started working there, we were part of the same department. He made me, a chronic introvert, feel welcome from day one. Since then, we have both moved on to other departments. At the end of an aisle in the corner of the warehouse, there is a caged area, as some things need to be locked away. This was basically his work area. My work entails to enter this caged area very often. So even though we are in different departments now, we still would work closely together almost every day. As we often didn't have enough equipment, we would share and work together with each others work. I have very few close friends in my life. And there are very few people I know that I feel like I can completely be myself around. Although he was just a work friend, he was so easy going that he was one of these people I could just be myself around. I had to go to that caged area today and it was weird him not being there.
This was just so out of the blue. He was only in his 40's and had 3 young children at home. Some of you may have heard about the business I am trying to start with my friend. He was completely encouraging of the whole idea, saying how he was looking forward to bringing his kids there when it opens. It truly is the good ones that go.
Anyway, I know I don't post here much but I just felt like getting some thoughts off my chest and I know no better place to do it than on here.