In blistering Texas, it was America 's Independence Day. As usual on every Independence Day since I was five years old, Ben and Alex, my two best friends, and I, went on a manly picnic. I diligently carried out my household chores, packed my picnic bag and off I went to collect my friends by way of bicycle. It is going to be an awesome day, I thought to myself as I sped down my neighborhood street on my beat-up blue Schwinn. Ben and I were born on the same day May 21, 2003. His father and my father were best friends from their days at King James High School. Their story is much like an old-fashioned novel or film about two lifelong best friends. They both went to Texas A&m and both got married the same year. Intriguingly, they had their firstborns in the same year as well. As fate would have it, Ben and I became close friends. I did not have a sibling, and Ben became a sort of twin brother to me. We saw each other almost daily, involving ourselves in our selfsame talent: soccer. We both …show more content…
It was three quarters of a mile west of my apartment. As the three of us rode noisily past plain suburban houses on our bicycles, mostly due to the rickety nature of our mechanical companions, fireworks exploded loudly in the clear sky behind …show more content…
How could God take him away so soon? There were so many unscrupulous people around, but God chose to take Ben. Life was never going to be the same again without him. A million friends could never replace him, or even one million angels, I thought. Then one evening, I was sitting with my mother after dinner, and I asked her, “Mom, does God love us? If He does, why does He hurt us?” With loving, teary eyes she peered into my eyes and said, “God loves us so much, son. He takes the righteous when they are still young, before the world can hurt them, and makes them