There were daffodils

Bright, sunny, yellow daffodils* strewn in two lines leading to the final resting place of a lovely young man.

Blue skies, a gentle breeze and warm sun jarred with the sadness of the day.

Words can’t do justice to how much of a void Steven has left behind him.

 

On the way to Belfast

The leader of our merry band

As you can see, he was ever so serious

Only 21 years old.

It’s unbelieveable that such a whirlwind of energy, always on the go – going to a meeting, in a meeting or just coming away from a meeting – isn’t going to be on the go anymore.

Meeting his family for the first time on the occassion of his funeral was…..just…..the wrong way to meet them.

There was no way to convery to them just how warm, vibrant, caring and passionate a person they had launched into the world.

It felt so inadequate to say “I’m sorry for your loss” and “He was such a great guy”.

Truth be told, he was such a whirl of proactive energy and touched so many people in his time that his impact would be months in the telling.

Words aren’t enough. So we cry and we hug each other in our sadness and hope that he knew just how well we thought of him.

We hope he felt a fraction of the care we felt for him.

He really was a great guy.

The priest, during the funeral service, said that being voted in as Students Union Vice President showed just how much respect LIT students had for Steven. That respect is earned.

Steven did earn our respect.  He gave u his time when he didn’t have any;  he spoke up and got passionate; he stayed calm and quiet while he listened; he was always on the move but would stop to have a chat; he was so serious but given the chance would photobomb any picture with the most ridiculous face.

He didn’t just have our respect though. He also had our liking. We liked Steve. He was one of the good ones.

He also earned our grief and has left so many people heartbroken.

It’s real and he’s gone and it sucks and blows so badly.

As so many of us stood in the small graveyard in Clonlara, the birds sang, the breeze was gentle and the sun warmed us.

It’s like he gifted us with a Spring day to help soften the blow.

One of my friends met the other for the first time today.

Steven is still bringing people together.

 

I’m so glad to be alive;  to enjoy lovely weather;  to potter into town;  be indecisive over books; to come home to my little family.

It’s my birthday tomorrow and growing older seems like such a fine and dandy thing to do

I only wish that Steven was growing older too.

 

Steven was passionate on the topic of Mental Health and suicide awareness. CSPP Limerick are a voluntary group he supported. I’m going to donate to them. If you’d like to do the same here’s a link to their page.

 

*An attendant at the funeral told a few of us that there were bunches of daffodils ready for Daffodil Day. He took some of them and lined them along the way to the grave. He went onto tell us that he had lost his young son a few years beforehand. It was a really lovely gesture and felt like the same type of thoughtful thing that Steven himself would do.