In Remembrance of Jonathan Tjarks
I’d known of Jonathan through his writing and work at The Ringer. And then he wrote a revealing, personal article, The Long Night of the Soul.
With a shared common faith and love for hoops, I sent him an email. He emailed back. We hopped on a call. And struck up a friendship.
Having seen the effects of cancer all too close to myself (my brother-in-law passed away at the age of 33), I could somewhat grasp the hardship he and his family was facing. But when I talked to him, it was hard to tell. He was someone full of hope and expectation. Full of love for his family and excellence in his craft.
At the end of our phone calls, he’d ask if we could pray together. And we would pray for each other over the phone. I don’t think I’d have the vulnerability to ask someone I’d never met in person to pray for me over the phone. But I followed his lead.
I was teaching my first NBA draft course and asked him if he would be up for being a part of it. He told me he wasn’t sure due to chemo (which obviously made perfect sense). But then he texted me the day of one of the classes, “I can hop on tonight.”
And there he was, sharing incredible basketball insights and even more so… the treasure of life:
I always assumed we’d meet each other in person. But I am thankful we met at all.
I hope to take away some of his boldness and vulnerability. His love for his family and humanity. And his working and doing what he loved until he passed.
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