David and I became acquainted before Covid and over time he became a cherished best friend. David was pure humor, extraordinary wit, a fan of puns, terrible at accepting compliments and obsessed with overusing parentheses. He was philosophical, always up for debating meaning and finding understanding. One time I returned the question of what he did over the weekend. He said, “He was reading a few books and trying to finish one in particular”. In turn I asked what he was reading. His response was “Batman”! I called him wicked smart and said I was expecting something else but shouldn’t have been surprised by his social curveball. He referenced the bar scene in ‘Good Will Hunting’ and said “’Regahdless’ I’d be psyched if he were referred to as Affleck or Damon ‘smaht’.”
David’s smile was infectious but his laughter was an explosion of dopamine. The first time we met I dumped soap and bubble all over him. Once he got over the shock it was an all-out war of two people and all the bubbles you can imagine. We played like we had no cares in the world, made the biggest mess of bubbles and laughed continuously. David has the trophy of making me laugh until I cried the most and making me smile and laugh so much that my face hurt. He was a wonderful person with a beautiful soul. It seems ‘saudade’ is the most accurate way to iterate you were loved and are painfully missed.