This hit me harder than I thought it would even though I saw the news this morning that he was in his last days. I was one of those Reagan-Democrats that voted for him in his second term. I was disillusioned with Jimmy Carter after voting for him and from what my family had taught me Ronald Reagan was the equivalent of the anti-Christ in Oregon. I ended up not voting in that election cycle. Mr. Reagan totally won me over and I found myself agreeing more and more with the messages that he communicated. His efforts along with the Holy Father brought down the iron curtain and brought freedom to millions. He revitalized our military and made us proud to be in the Armed Forces again. He articulated his vision for America and the world and never left his principles behind.
He made me laugh and I loved him and I will deeply miss him.
7 comments
A great loss
Touching tribute, Jeff. And ditto.
Oh, yes. I keep remembering how he affected our lives – how much more possible it seemed in 1983, to get married and start a family and hope to buy a little house and be free, than it would have seemed ten years earlier. Well, God rest his soul, good man.
While I do vaguely remember Jimmy Carter’s presidency, Ronald Reagan was my First President. He had a way of making big issues so understandable that even a 12-year-old apathist began to care about what was going on in the larger world. Someone on Mark Shea’s site commented that for a Reagan kid all the presidents since him have never measured up to him. As another Reagan kid I totally agree. May he rest in peace.
He won the cold war, solving the worst crisis of the latter 20th century. He wasn’t afraid to say what needed to be said. If only we had more like him, things would be much better and much more honest.
I understand Reagan’s death hit JPII rather hard. JPII has never had such a bond to any other president, and it is no surprise: both worked together to bring about the downfall of communism; both were shot in 1981 by would-be-assassins, with bullets that came inches to their heart; both forgave their assassins from their hospital beds; both had suffered debilitating diseases; and on a minor point, Reagan was an actor, and JPII has said that, if he could have chosen another career, it would have been acting. I know JPII feels that he has lost a friend.
In a way, though, this can be seen as a blessing. I’ve seen what Alzheimer’s does to people, and the effects are devestating. My great-aunt, one of the liveliest people I knew and a great artist, is now a shell of a person who doesn’t recognize anybody or anything around her. I hope through Reagan’s passing more light will be shed on Alzheimer’s so we can find a cure for this horrible illness.