To know Aaron, or as some knew him, "Bob," was to experience friendship. True, wholesome, having-your-back-always friendship. Aaron never walked into a room where he didn't know at least someone in the vicinity, and if by some off chance he didn't, by the end of the time he spent there he had exchanged his number four times and had a dozen Facebook requests. You yearned to be near him, as he had an inexplicable energy. If you were the girl who clings to hanging out in a corner, he brought you into the light or into a card game to make you feel welcome. He'd walk over and invite you to partake in taking a group photo or shot of Fireball, because he simply was that guy and I speak confidently in saying that is what everyone adored most from him.

Aaron's good -natured spirit came into my life when I moved to Greenwood my sophomore year of high school, without a clue of what to do or who to know. Paula, his mother and the patron saint who walks among us humans and the office of Greenwood High School, was the first face I met. She was quick to make me feel at ease and hopeful about the upcoming year, even going as far to invite me and my mother to a Cabi party she would host later in the week at her home. Without a clue what to expect, I pulled into the driveway, invitation in hand, and noticed Aaron breaking a sweat to figure out how to start Paula's new "push to start" car. Being the smartass I am, I offered my assistance and tried to clue him into the idea that a second opinion may be in his best interest. Intrigued at the little blonde bossing him around, he obliged, and the engine came to life with a tap of my foot on the brakes. I sashayed my way into the house, grinning, to boast that I had started the car. Again, this being my first acquaintance with Aaron, I didn't know yet that his efforts would not be so easily dismissed. He hurried past me, and I quickly met his pace, like a brother and sister going to tattle on each other. Paula had heard both of us banter long enough to be laughing about us being "messes," as she now always refers to us. I'd be lying if I said that his red head and infectious smile didn't send me, as well as every other girl within a hundred mile radius and then some, into a frenzy -- but I couldn't be more pleased with the way our friendship panned out over the years. Who would have thought that I would instantaneously miss him making fun of me, and walking into the Norris home unannounced to pester him will leave me with a void that cannot be replaced -- but I know he is with everyone in his own special way, catered to them.

Like I said, to have Aaron in your life was to truly radiate in his presence (but I'd never let him know that, as his confidence was already grand) in the best way. I watched him settle arguments, stand in someone's defense, make a girl fall in love and share a bond of brotherhood all in the matter of an hour. When news spread of his accident, within minutes, a community had come together and gathered to pour some of that same energy into him and his family -- all of which is duly owed to the Norris family, tragic incident or not. I marveled that my Facebook feed was a continuous stream of prayers and positive uplifting thoughts for Aaron, both from people who knew him closely and from strangers who just knew of him. I went up to the hospital as soon as I found out, and honestly, I felt a little overwhelmed by the sheer amount of people who flooded the waiting room and stood outside the care facility -- but I was not surprised in the slightest. When tragedy strikes, your senses are awakened to all that is around you, quickly taking in the moment at hand and feeling obligated to tell those who influence your life how dear they are to you and to draw them close. Some become closer to God, praying for forgiveness, praying that if today was their last day, they would be saved and sanctioned through the pearly gates, I think that's something Aaron would relish -- that due to this, he was able to affect people for the grace of God, being that he was a sinning and unwavering son of Christ himself.

Amidst this tragedy and feeling of brokenness, I hope that for those of you who, like myself, are still wrapping your brain around this, when the grief doesn't make your breath hitch every time your mind is idle for a second, when the text messages of condolences cease and your timeline frees of his face, that you still continue to remember the way his death made you feel in the most resplendent sense. I hope heartache leaves you and esteem for Aaron's legacy fuels a fire for living like he would intend if he was capable. I pray that when the anguish of the lack of his presence is no longer the first thought on your mind, as one day it won't be as life goes on, that you still remind those dear to you of the importance they hold in your life. I pray that your relationship with God strengthens and you continue on without fear of the future. I pray that you become that light at the party, who extends a hand or cold beer to someone to make them feel welcome. I hope watching him live the life he had on this Earth puts in perspective being angry with someone or holding yourself back from experiencing the goodness in the world as well as the wonders. Aaron wouldn't want you to be scared of the world because he was "too young and too good of a soul" to be taken from us; that would be too easy. Aaron is already tugging at my heart to take the next adventure that comes my way, to let go of what burdens me and to live a happy life. When faced to live in tragedy or peace, I hope you choose to #LiveLikeNorris.

This piece is dedicated to the life of Bobby Aaron Norris and to his family.

Romans 12:12 "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."