Jeffery James Hettwer

I was just looking through our yearbook last night. If you would have told me then that you were going to marry me we could have saved ourselves fifty bucks and just gotten one copy. ;) After all this time I had almost forgotten that you were named "Most Artistic" of our senior class. Very well deserved Baby!

 

For my eighteenth birthday Jeff painted me a picture of a little house on a lake with a boat parked along the shore. For his eighteenth birthday my Mom and I smuggled the painting into the Walker in a backpack and took a picture of it as though it was hanging on the wall. I told him that one day his paintings would hang there indefinitely. I know that one day they will!

 

Today is Art Attack, Baby! I still think of the day we moved in to the studio. You were so excited to have a REAL space to paint in. What a milestone for a young artist, for any artist really. I have always believed in your talent, all the way back to high school when we met in Ms. Quello's painting class. I was looking at the Harrison Ford painting last night thinking of how smooth you were back then. You were working on the color study for that painting and I told you how much I liked it. You asked me if I wanted it and I quickly said "yes", just as quickly you asked me if I wanted your phone number to go along with the painting! You turned it over and wrote your number on the back of it. Not wanting to appear too anxious I waited, and the next day when I got to class you came over to me and said "You didn't call me." I apologized and you told me that your friends wanted you to go out with them but you stayed home just in case I was going to call. I thought "Oh no, he doesn't know this game." From that day in 1995 on there wasn't a single day that went by that I Didn't talk to you. You were always so sweet and so genuine. I can't tell you how much I miss having you here, loving me the way you did. You were my best friend and I will never be the same without you!

The election yesterday reminded me of one of my many memories about you Jeffro.

I remember one day last summer when we were hanging out at your house.  You went out to get the mail and you came back in with a huge smile on your face and you were SO excited about this envelope you had just received.  I asked you why all the excitement over this envelope.  You told me that in this envelope were your Barack Obama bumper stickers.  I asked, who is Barack Obama?

(As you know I am not real into politics.)  You then told me, Barack Obama is the next President of the United States.  You were right Jeffro!!  He won!!   You knew long before any of us. 

 I can see the big smile on your face now.

                                                      

                                                                        

jeff you were wise beyond your age you were right he won god bless you we will see you in heaven kelly god bless you too the dreshars

10/31/08: It only seems appropriate to share a Halloween memory today.  You always had the best costumes.  You put so much effort into them every year!  The one year that Jeremy and I came to your guy's house in Andover dressed as the old man and woman was so hilariousl.  Noone could tell that it was us, and we didnt' talk for at least the first hour that we were there.  I don't think that you thought Jeremy would get so dressed up for Halloween.  The funniest part of the night was when Kelly's dad Fred was actually getting a little "annoyed" with us when we wouldn't talk to him.  And then he said to us; " I think you two must be at the wrong party".. Too funny.  I spent the rest of the night picking all the spiders out of Kelly's hair.  What a fun night!  I miss you Jeff.  Your brother misses you so much.  Thank you for teaching us the value of a smile, and for teaching us to cherish every fun time we have with our friends and family.  And I love looking at the picture of you and I out at your Dad's bonfire after Ambers' wedding.  What a couple of goofballs.  You did win by the way..(even though you already knew that).....xoxoxoxo.