As many of you know, we lost a person who was instrumental in the building of Team Solitaire recently. Jed Mingo embodied the very essence of Team Solitaire - the D.I.Y. attitude, the easygoing demeanor, the idea that life was not just about the end result but about the ride. I thought about giving up on Team Solitaire many times in my life - more recently than ever before. The turbulence, failures, long nights and seemingly impossible crests that we try to climb can overwhelm me. Very few people believed in me and the team the way that Jed did. He was always a voice of reason and gave me a perspective on things that even though I may not always succeed in my own eyes, that other people see it as success. It's a perspective that I am now trying to adopt.
I am not a glass is half empty person - never will be. Although I will miss having Jed for many, many reason, I will celebrate the life he lived and the affect he had on my life, the team, his friends, family and anyone he ever touched.
RC
1 comment:
Ryan,
Jed didn't talk a whole lot about "people." He talked about ideas, and stories, and dreams, and stuff like that.
But he talked about YOU. The respect and admiration he had (has) for you, was so tremendous that when I met you I am sure you thought I was a freak or just some starstruck moto-rat. I'm not, it's just that he spoke that way about so few people. He had an unusual eagerness for me to meet you. I think he figured that knowing you would make him look good. Not because of your success (although I know you have expressed discouragement in your blog)...but because of the virtue he always saw in you. So, by proxy, I look up to you so much. I will comment on your next post, too, as it deserves its own.
Best,
Kirsten Montague
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