I hope they have salsa dancing in heaven

So, Stef and Kelsey are here. There's a lot to write about, but I'm having trouble gathering my thoughts. My friend and former coworker, Kaleo, died in a tragic car crash while on vacation in Georgia on Saturday. Kaleo was a really good guy. He got back from his mission in Brazil not too long ago, and seemed to have a tough time adjusting back to non-mission life. I would often give him a hard time when he would sing Peter Breinholt songs at work, or playfully call us to repentance in his own mix of Spanish and Portuguese. The more I got to know him, though, the more I realized how good his heart was. I remember one day when Stef dropped me off at work. Everyone was anxious to leave after a long, stressful day. As I walked out to the parking lot, I remembered that I didn't have a car with me. Not sure what I would do, and not wanting to make Stef come out to get me, I asked my coworkers for a ride home. Nobody was going towards Provo. Kaleo volunteered to take me home, even though he lived in Lehi--a half-hour away in the opposite direction. I don't know if I would have been willing to do that for someone at the end of a long work day.

I remember when Kaleo had his heart broken by a girl that he had really grown attached to. When she let him go, he fell hard. Kaleo was a really giving person who would have given himself and all his efforts to someone. The saddest part of all this to me is knowing that he passed away without getting to enjoy life with a wife and children. Last week, I felt prompted multiple times to send Kaleo an e-mail telling him how everything was going out here and asking him how we was doing. I kept putting it off, telling myself that I'd do it later. I deeply regret not following that prompting. I never got to tell him that I appreciated his friendship.

I am comforted to know that Kaleo will soon get the chance to do all the things he couldn't do here. In a way, it seems like he'd be much happier in a place where he can be constantly doing missionary work. Thank heavens for temple work.