I’ve been thinking about Bruce Campbell lately. No, not the one you’re thinking of. You’re probably thinking of the actor and star of Burn Notice. I’m thinking about another one.
This one disappeared. Completely.
Bruce and his wife, Mabelita, drove from their hometown of Northampton, Mass., to see their son in Jacksonville, Il.. They stopped for the night at the Sandman Hotel. The next day, Mabelita woke up, and Bruce was gone. His clothes were still there, his wallet, money, keys. Everything but Bruce. That was April 13, 1959. He’s been missing ever since.
I wonder what they said to each other before they went to sleep. I wonder if they had a fight, or if they held each other, or if they just laid down without talking and dozed off. I wonder what those last words were, especially when they didn’t know they would be the last ones.
A lot of people have gone missing in my life over the last few years. Some went quickly, and we weren’t able to say goodbye. Others we knew were leaving, and we discussed it. Still some just drifted out of my life, still here in this world, but not in mine.
And I wonder what my last words were to them. I hope I told them how much they mean to me, how they have helped to shape my life, and how I am better for knowing them. I hope I let them know how precious they are to God, just in case no one else told them.
What will my last words be tonight? I hope they are good, because…well…you just never know.
Michael Henderson 