Richard Joyce

West Point, 2002

Be Thou At Peace

Posted by Stephen Snyder on September 29, 2003:

What can I say about Rick. Ours was a very unusual relationship. We were two very different people going in very different directions brought together for one reason or another to antagonize each other. We shared some of our best high school years together, and there's something about working yourself 'til your dog tired that really creates a strong bond between people. We fed off each others natural competitive spirit and pushed ourselves to distances we couldn't motivate ourselves to do by ourselves. On these runs we'd talk about life, religion, pollitics, and since you and I couldn't be more oppisite we'd never get tired of talking. Of course we'd frustrate each other, wondering why you or I didn't understand, but if we did then we probably would run out of stuff to talk about... You helped me to define myself in those difficult years when we are so despirately searching for an identity. I know it's not at all what you would have hoped for, but I don't think you would be disappointed. I regret that we didn't stay in closer contact after high school. I'm kicking myself now for not sending you an e-mail of congratulations on your engagement. I thought I was too busy to look up your e-mail. I'm happy that I was able to play a part in putting you and Kerry together. I got a chance to read an e-mail you sent Emily telling her how happy Kerry made you. I think of that now and it makes me so happy for you that you found that kind of love. My heart goes out to Kerry and how hard it must be for her. Probably what I will miss most is your cocky smile. You always had this confidence about you that you could pull almost anything off, and you usually did. You were always full of yourself, not in a bad way, but in a way that made us root for you. A characteristic that not many could pull off well. Now that you're gone I know that a part of me feels empty. In you there was a person who we could battle each other on issues that defined who we were deep done at our core. Yet in the end brush it off because it made us know ourselves better. You were my nemesis and my friend. And I am proud to have known you. You will be missed. -Stephen

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