Wayne has given me so many ways to remember him. I think of him as my preacher, my elder, but most of all as my friend and confidant. Everything that Wayne did, he did it with his whole heart, and many of us know he was a friend with his whole heart. Of all that I will remember, the one thing that I will cherish most is our regular conversatons. How I loved to talk to Wayne. He had a way of filling every occasion with surprising significance and richness. Even an afternoon chat became a sacred thing.

Each week I looked forward to these planned afternoon conversations. They will always remain an important part of my life. You might expect that we always talked about weighty matters. Not always. Of course, we talked of books we had recently read, but we also talked of birds that we had spotted lately in the back yard. Wayne has an insatiable curiosity about many things. We talked of gardens and grape vines, of stars and constellations, of recipes and 'what's for supper?' (I will miss those recipes). Yes, and we talked of faith. If Wayne has a greatest attribute, it is his faith. By that I mean his enduring hopefulness. Let me speak plainly! Wayne would never give up. He taught me that faith can be both tough and tender. At times when I felt like shrinking back from church activities, Wayne continued to encouraged me to be more involved. I mean he really encouraged me (as only Wayne can do). He had a way that he could kindly and benevolently 'get in my face' but he knew how to get in my heart as well. I will miss his admonitions and his kind words. I will miss his knowledge and practical wisdom, But I think I will miss most of all his recipes.

Wayne celebrated life in Christ everyday, and he always celebrated life with others. I am so glad that I was able to spend time with him to just talk. Wayne thought intently, expressed himself intently, and laughed intently. What a joy to have these memories. I will miss him intently.