Paul

August 19, 2000

I wrote this poem in memory of Paul Chessman (1981-2000), a youth from our church who fell over a waterfall to his death on August 10, 2000. He was in the process of pulling someone else, who was slipping on the rocks, to safety, and he fell instead.

He was a boy
A boy of 9
When I met him
A friendly boy
A mischievous boy

He was a teen
A teen of 13
When we went to Mexico
In Tijuana he played soccer with Mexican teens
He read a story to Mexican kids
A gringo teen
A friendly teen
A mischievous teen

He grew older
He became a young man
Spent time with his friends
Shared his big heart with them
Shared his mischief with them
Loved them, cared for them,
Teased them, forgave them

He was a young man
A man of 19
When he climbed a mountain
When he saved the life of a guy he hardly knew
When he slipped on a rock and fell over Sunset Falls
And the sun set on his all-too-short life

He was a young man
A man of 19
When we lost him
A brave man
A mischievous man
A selfless man