Bethany Flom

            “Love always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”  1 Corinthians 13:7

            I trust that we had this true love.  For Reid always protected, always trusted, always hoped, and forever persevered.

            Reid’s nature was to protect.  He would not be content unless he knew that those he loved were contented.  During one summer, we went to Marblehead to celebrate seven months together, with a picnic.  While enjoying the ocean with an open space around us,  we heard a strange noise coming from the shrubs.  Reid grabbed me and said we should leave, since it was getting late.  He was always looking out for me.  He was uncomfortable if I was unhappy.  Recently, he even told me that I should transfer to a smaller, more enclosed college campus, because he said that “there are not enough people that love you and take care of you in Washington.”  Of course, he was probably hinting that I should apply to Columbia.  He protected me, and I felt safe, even when we were separated by physical distance.  But of course, I was most secure in his arms.  Whether he was healthy or sick, he was strong, and he was a protector.

            Reid also trusted:  in God, in himself, and in us.  While battling cancer, he poured much energy into discovering faith.  He spent many months analyzing the Bible and contemplating religion, until he concluded that he would trust in God’s love for his life.  I will always admire Reid’s confidence.  He trusted in his own decisions, which he only made after thorough and logical consideration.  I remember going with him to an electronics store just a few weeks after his leg amputation.  He had to search the store for the most knowledgeable employee to demonstrate each brand and style of equipment before making a purchase.  He could trust himself because he spent the time to ensure that things were done right.  And he trusted in us; we trusted each other.  As he once wrote, “I love her more than words could explain; she is my baby whom I protect, but who also holds me in her arms when I crash and burn….”  We were good together.  We could trust each other to fulfill what the other lacked.  We joked about how we were so starkly opposite, down to the fact that he ate macaroni and cheese with a spoon, while I eat it with a fork.  But these opposite qualities locked us together in a bond of trust, like two puzzle pieces, or even like two Lego’s.  Our trust connected the mind, the heart, and the soul intangibly.

            Not only did Reid trust.  He hoped.  He hoped to heal, to go to college, to become an engineer.  He hoped that God would let these dreams happen.  His summer plans included traveling to Disney with his brother and friends, and of course attending Tom Petty, Oasis, and Eddie Money concerts.  Nothing could quench Reid’s hope.  May we all learn to live for today by hoping in tomorrow, as Reid exemplified.  We hoped for a future together.  We grew strong by surviving the trials of time, distance, and illness.  I even dreamed of one day being in a church with you all on a happier day.  The dream can no longer be fulfilled; the white has faded into black.  But Reid would never want our hope to extinguish.  So, instead, I treasure our past dreams, but I now hope in heaven, where I will eventually join him for a sweet and lasting dance.

            And Reid persevered.  His strength is indescribable.  He was born a fighter.  He strove to excel:  in swimming, in academics, in music, and in life.  I was always so proud to be with him, as he endeavored to be the perfect romantic.  On the night of our one-year anniversary, I was puzzled when Reid stepped into my house, since I had not heard the familiar growl of the Saab turbo engine arriving.  Imagine my thrill and surprise when I  walked out my front door and into a stretch limosine, where Reid presented me with a bracelet from Tiffany’s.  Reid did  everything with his whole heart.  He persevered and fought to be the very best man he could be, despite the constant threats that he faced.  Exactly:  he faced his trials head on.  On of his favorite quotes states, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the judgement that  something else is more important than fear.”  Trusting in the hope of life was more important to Reid than his pain, and so he fought.  I have never know anyone with more strength, courage, or perseverance.

            Together, Reid and I protected, trusted, hoped, and persevered.  We loved.  I will always carry this gift in my heart.

            To  Weston, Mr. and Mrs. Sacco, and all of Reid’s extended family and friends, I am so deeply sorry for your loss.  Thank you so much for being such wonderful and welcoming people.  I am honored to have shared the past two and half years with all of you.  Thank you for letting me be a part of your family.  Reid loved each of you dearly and uniquely, and he will live on through  you.

            To Reid Sacco, the one I have loved, love, and will always love….Thank you.  You taught me to think with my mind and my heart, to have confidence in myself, to love and be loved, and to treasure life with passion.  You will always have a place in my heart.  I will sit by the ocean or by the lake in Wakefield, and I will know that you are there with me in the gentle breeze moving over the water.  I miss you.  I am broken, I am empty, I am lost without you.  Yet I can never thank you enough for loving me, as only you could.

I will treasure our journey faithfully.

“Highway run into the midnight sun

Wheels go round  and round

You’re on my mind…

Right down the line it’s been you an me

And lovin’ a music man

Ain’t always what it’s supposed to be…

Through space and time

Always another show

Wondering where I am

Lost without you

Faithfully, I’m still yours

I’m forever yours

Ever your—faithfully”

I love you.