Who was the first friend you looked up to?

I’d say it’s my neighbor when I was in elementary school. He was a year older than I was and we hung out all the time. We would work together to do whatever, and he introduced me to many new activities (such as biking and roller-blading). We would work on projects together too…I remember we had a long-term project and built a ramp to trick off of.

My father.

“Lanky” Lance Lightfoot, he was very tall.

Kevin Sutherland, he was over 6 foot.. and I’m only 5 foot 1”

In fourth grade or maybe third, Mark Albertson introduced me to The Shadow and Doc Savage and The Phantom Toll Booth. He was really smart. So smart his parents sent him to a private school. I really looked up to him. But he broke my heart when he played Batman and Robin with another kid up the street instead of with me.

I was so depressed that I think I didn’t see any point in going on. My mother tried to help, but she had no idea what kind of passion I had. Which was probably why I never felt like she loved me for real. Just on paper, so to speak. She was a good mother, but I always hungered for more active feelings, and I guess Mark was the first person I ever found who had a similar passion. It was all intellectual, but it was still passion.

The last I heard, Mark was serving as a page in the Senate. That was many years ago.

I tend not to look up to my friends; I tend to look across at them. Said metaphorically but in all seriousness.

I was raised with all my Aunts, Uncles and cousins and all my social activities centered around our church, so I don’t really remember, it was just a life style to look up to those around me.