The war just hit home

The paper normally goes to press around midnight. When it does, those of us who are here check over it one last time before it is delivered to homes and racks around the county.

For some reason, I noticed a story at the bottom of the very last page in the A section. It was a story relating to the Iraq war. I normally skip over those, but for some reason, I began reading the headline: "Roadside bomb kills Hickory man in Iraq."

I'm originally from Hickory, so I read on: "Army Spec. Darryl Wardlaw "Ward" Linder, 24, died Tuesday...."

I know this guy. A few months younger than me, we worked together for a while at a grocery store -- our first high school job. He was a sweetheart. Tall, kind of skinny, a regular guy with an easy smile. I remember him as someone who stood up for other people and for what he believed in -- he got in a fight once in the store's parking lot for that very reason.

I drive through Mountain View a couple times a month, and each time I do, I think to myself that I ought to look him up and see how he's doing.

I guess I should have done more than think about it...

Ward is survived by his father and mother and a 3-year-old son, according to the story.

I hope his son will be told every day for the rest of his life that his father was a great guy who is missed.

Here's a link to the original story.