Kevin McLain

I didn't recognize the face.

Just the name.

There were too many years in between connections on this flight called life.

I had tried to find him. A passing effort to be sure. It was more from curiosity than a real need to see him.

Unfortunately, long after my search was over, I discovered I had misspelled his last name. A quick look up in the yearbook would have corrected that.

Didn't even think about it.

In searches for others, I had discovered that some people just don't have a detectable internet footprint. For whatever reason, there are those of my generation who haven't totally bought into the techno-lifestyle that seems to pervade the culture.

More power to them.

But perhaps I was unable to find his footprint because of the misspelling.

Doesn't matter.

He's dead now.

A mutual friend posted his picture and a sad statement. She remembered how to spell his name correctly. That's how I found out.

And I considered writing a nice eulogy.

But I scrapped that idea.

I didn't know how to spell his name for way too long.