“How you feelin?”
Authentic laughter
Then came the smile, a little tease, then authentic laughter, now a return to a controlled face. “Okay!?” – was a half question/half reply — he “noted” my comments. “Okay?” Next came something that required deep thought, (some details were missing), nevertheless after a few queries, profundity occurred. Bill gave us, in a short sentence, hours of meditation; the baritone spoke as a news reporter.
Bill spoke of his D.J. days, when prompted. I think he played “MacArthur Park” first of anybody. He liked Bela Fleck and anything “light jazz.” I didn’t know Bill back then but the rich voice was enough to quell all doubts. He preferred “John Tesh” in the call room at B.W.N.
He had a command in him – authority!
Bill sold waterproofing from the phones; he took calls too, he handled complaints. Most hearing him for the first time thought he was, of course, the owner. He had a command in him – authority!
It all makes sense, maybe not at first.
Bill was a blog writer, a step above us amateurs. “Apologies for the delay in getting to part 3, I’ve been dealing with some health issues. To a degree I still am. But I also don’t want to delay this part of the series any longer than absolutely necessary. So, here we go.” He was immersed in it. Dedicated. “I’ve been using smart-phones since the days of Windows Mobile. And I’ve been actively Christian, even before that.” It all makes sense, maybe not at first.
“Tin foil”
He hired a friend to drive him back and forth to his job at Waterproofing. I never knew, maybe could have chipped in. Bill paid his own way.
Sometimes he had hair. Sometimes facial.
What we loved most about Bill was his presence with us. He was a cowboy in appearance. Sometimes did the hat too. Sometimes he had hair. Sometimes facial. When Bill was not around, we knew his breathing was bothering him. We prayed. He always came back. This time was different.
Our loss, God’s gain.
Bill Kraski is brightening heaven now. Our loss, God’s gain. He worked the Pastoral Care office with us. Just the fact that God was using Bill, gave us all hope. Bill, the world did not deserve you. You, like all of us, are trophies of God’s grace. Your reward? a big one. Bill, we will miss you. Till then…
Bill was instrumental in my early days as a Christian. We would man a booth together at the Park 'n Go by the river, near the airport in Miami. We had hours upon hours to talk in there, about God, Bible translations and Honda cars. We lived together on a big old buoy tender vessel on the Miami River, along with the Miami team led by Pastor Tree. Then, to be together with him again years later on the Pastoral Care Team in Baltimore was a real treat.
Thanks for the response. I knew Bill as a friend and fellow-teaser. My comments on him reflect my personal rapport with Bill; a constant bantering with teasing and playful fun. I will miss him.