Eulogy 2 by Will

As we send James Allen off for his next adventure I want everyone to think of their best memory of James. As you do this send the love and happiness to him, as I am sure at this moment he is sending his love to comfort and console us as well.

For a while now James has been walking a rough road. He’s been paying his dues as we all do, and each person here has helped him in some form. As ships on the storm, sometimes we stand tall in the breeze, and at times the storm brings us to our knees. James did not shy away from taking responsibility for himself, his actions, and tried just like a storybook hero always tried to do the right thing, even if it hurt him, and at times he would get beaten down by the wind and not always able to do what we thought he should, but as soon as he could straighten to stand and tally ho he would set to task the best way he could.

I first met James at a Christmas party that Winn-Dixie was through for it’s employees. Though we would exchange hellos and pleasantries we really became good friends when we met back up during our college years at RCC. At that time I was more of a loner and was mostly by myself as I knew a few people at the college but wasn’t close to any of them at the time. James saw me, said hello, and shook my hand. As I talked with Jim McDonald the other day, James had that old fashioned firm hand shake that you don’t really feel anymore. From there he noticed that I didn’t really hang out with anyone outside of classes and pulled me into the SGA fold. Other than in my classes which I had a few people I started hanging out with, the Main crew I mostly hung out with was the fold that formed around James. He helped pull me out of my shell.

He Believed:

Most of the time you do not talk about politics and religion as these subjects cause so many issues with people. Though we didn’t talk about it often we would speak on religion from time to time over the years I’ve known him. In December of 2022 I had went to pick him up for game night, he was having a rough day and we started talking about it. As he spoke about how things were moving in his life at the time he said I’ve been talking to god trying to figure out how to maneuver from here and then spoke of praying for a few things and people. Though he mostly kept to himself James did believe and knew he was not alone. This conversation also showed his belief in other people, as those prayers for others he was seeking told me of his belief and hope that each of us here can watch out for each other and be more understanding of each other.

The Scholar:

James was always in thirst for knowledge. Knowledge is power, no matter how trivial. From our time in college he was always learning or researching something to even training with me for a short time to learn a bit of the martial arts. With this and his love to converse always would bring a debate or conversation that could sometimes last through the night. He loved to share this knowledge and with it he would enrich our lives with things we wanted to know, needed to know, or even sometimes hated we now know. But as he shared things he knew and learned he enriched our lives and made us better and ultimately lead to him starting his podcast and enriching others through social media.

He’s a storyteller:

Every week we get together to play D&D. If James was running the game he loved to weave us through an intricate story with as many elements as he could fit, and with our group would rein us in to get us where he wanted us to keep the story in line, even if sometimes we didn’t necessarily want it. Action, loss, growth, romance, suspense, Comedy, he would throw everything in he could as it makes a good story and is life. But as he did he loved to see the impact and emotions his story had, as any good storyteller does. And as any good storyteller he would shift the story depending on what he saw. James saw life like this, We are each our own story that intertwines with others. Please remember this as we go forward as James was always exited to see where the next chapter would go. To our game night group, He always enjoyed seeing everyone of us, and missed us when when couldn’t make it. Even on Magic nights while we were getting our butts kicked. Charlie I think his love for you beats the rules of Charlies school of magic. Darrel, who was James.

He’s a character:

He was unique when playing a character, though every once in awhile he wanted to shine in the spotlight, he usually preferred to stand with the group and show as a unit. Whenever we play a character on game night a piece of who we are will always show through. James characters always showed this trait. James wanted his recognition for what he did every once in awhile but most of the time he was happy to do his part and let others get the glory or he would just be content to do his part. Another trait that shows through was he always wanted to uplift others. In his characters he had your back. If any of that is in this room had a situation go down and James found out he would try and be there. Kenny 2+2 may equal fish, but that fish equals love.

He’s a comic:

With these traits He was always trying to lift people up. If you were having a bad day he would always try to help, and if it was something he couldn’t help with he would at least try to cheer you up to make the burden you had lighter, and he enjoyed making people laugh. Though I am not a TikToker I did get to see some of his skits, and as he would stay true to form for the character he played he almost always made sure to include some type of humor. Though I regretfully have not been able to keep up with James & Jerry’s podcast like I should have, and though not all topics I am well versed in, as soon as I hit that play button I can’t wait to see what shenanigans are about to take place cause I know I’m going to get a good laugh. James I promise buddy I will catch up on the episodes. He loves you Jerry and could not have asked for a better co-host. To his TikTok followers and podcast viewers he loves each and every one of you and wants the best for you all.

He’s a romantic with the tenets of a knight:

James always wanted love, and to some respect he felt like he failed in this part. As he once told me he only wanted to do it once, and it weighted heavy on him when it blew up. Even after this he was still looking for true love, a love that would last him his lifetime, though a few walls of protection had formed. Like Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca he wanted to sweep someone off their feet and time that show of intimacy just right. Just like a knight in shining armor he wanted to save the damsel in distress and ride into setting sun over the mountains. James kept the Knightly chivalrous code close to his heart and he would have been welcome to sit as a constable at the table in Camelot. To Christie, even though you two fell out of love, he still cared and wanted the best for you. To Juno, between the distance and his past his heart may have been guarded, he loves you, and I know for a fact you were sent to him.

He is family:

We all must live our life so that our stories can be rich. As all stories you will always see it from the perspective of the book your reading. We are born bound from the start to other stories, and as we grow our stories in our direction. James story kept big ties to those stories. Over the past couple years me and James would sit and talk about his mom, if she ate, how she was doing that day, most people would consider a lot of it small talk but she was on his mind. To Alice, He loves you and worried about you more than you know.

I first interacted with Tracy when she was at burger kind, she threaten to throw me out of the drive thru for blasting 2 Live Crew. To James she was big sister and as most siblings do there was a good bit of sibling strive here and there. As all younger sibling are they have to carve there own way, even when the older sibling still wants to watch over them. To Tracy, though at times you two would be aggravated and on your last nerve with each other, he loves you and your guidance to him always was in the back of his mind.

Haley and Diamond were always extremely special to James. My oldest memory of them as I told them not long ago was when they were kids running around in diapers. In the living room at their Nana’s I would sit there and watch them as they would run a circle around me and jump over my outstretched legs. In this memory there was something very telling about James. As he watched them he sat their with smile on his face. He was happy because you two were happy and enjoying yourselves. I think even then as we sit there he was already pondering what the stories your lives would be and anticipating getting to share some of that journey with you. He loves you and will be keeping an eye on you to see where your stories go.

Though I don’t know Bret that well, James did speak of you at times. He loves you and is very proud of you and the endeavors you pursue.

He’s a brother:

Not all family is bonded by blood. James is my brother as he was to others that are here today. When I went through one of the darkest times of my life James was one of the people I sought out to help. In footprints in the sand, we always think of Jesus and god. God uses us. Some of those footprints belonged to James that carried me during that time. Didn’t matter to him if it was middle of the night and he just got to sleep 15 minutes ago because he had to work early in the morning. It could have been in person and he would miss some sleep to go sit and talk. It could even be to go sit at the bar with you for hours not saying anything. If you were about to do something stupid he would advise and try and talk you out of it. At that time in my life even though I had to find my own way out of the darkness he was one of the people that was there holding candles to try and keep it at bay. To Chuck, He loves you and will miss that sense of humor. Winfield, he may not have been at our level when it came to cars, but he was ready to roll with us when we asked. Kevin he loves you and he had great admiration for you. He loves you Brit, He cherished sitting and talking with you about the campaigns just as much as he did running and playing them.

He’s a friend:

Don’t think I can forget about his friends. Every one of you lite up his life. Even on some of his worst days I have seen it take meeting one friend, especially one he had not seen in awhile, brighten his day. Even if the meeting was for a minute as you passed by on the street, as long as it was enough time to say hello, shake hands, and do a quick catch up it could shift his day.

Part of the unit:

James liked to work. Weather he was a cook, saleman, or manager he wanted to work. He prefered white collar because he was a thinker, and some of his ideas was sometimes a little behind and head of the time for when he would have it. Stephanie he really loved working at the collective, that was pretty much his dream job. Thank you so much for taking him on. He wishes you all the success moving forward.

True riches:

James didn’t really care about being rich or have dreams of huge grandeur. He wanted enough to live a good comfortable life though life side tracked him from where he wanted to be situated on that aspect. He wanted people to know him. He wanted them to see the person inside. James knew he was blessed with the people around him. More than anything he wanted to know people and help them when he could. He just did not have the full realization that in this aspect of life he was richer than a king. He does now.

A glowing smile:

I will always remember his smile. His true smile. The one he had when he glowed. Everything I have spoke of could make him light up, but right before James chapters changed there was always this glowing smile. When he graduated college, that smile. When he worked at RW Goodman company and was working getting himself fit, there was that smile. The day before his wedding, there was that smile. When he got the job at the collective, yet again it was there. The day me and him standing around talking waiting on the arrival of the first visit of a special friend, I again got to see the glowing smile that seemed to precede the chapters turning. There are others I’m sure others got to see and ones I saw that have failed to come to memory, but any time James was moving on to a new chapter of his life it was there.

His last night with us as James and Jerry came in the door I was watching a kickboxing match. As James sat at the table a conversation started up which led to a little bit of playful banter and hijinx between them. I did not realize it at the exact moment I saw it, but it was there that glowing smile. I didn’t see it then, though I did notice he was happier that night he had been in the weeks before. Though I think we all wish we had another chapter with him, and not James starting his next book.

Let’s all make sure as we go forth in life that we try and make as many good memories with each other as we can, as we never know when our book will end, and someone else will be looking back through our chapters for the love and comfort in those memories.

We are dust flowing in the cosmos for a season.
We make impressions as we flow to the north and to the south.
Others take notice and either flock or flee.
But the impressions are there for us to see.
Once our season has ended blessed be.

Not every hero has powers and they don’t all wear capes.

Carry on my brother, the darkside will not prevail. When my book closes and I’m on my way to start my next adventure, James have my sword ready for me, I’ll roll for initiative.