I miss my good friend Charlie. I had met him on a weekday team a few years ago. I introduced him to my weekend team. Within weeks, he knew everyone in every league and everyone knew and liked him. Pretty soon, he's telling me he's dating my good friend Megan. Then they are moving in together! He moved fast on the field and off.

I played on a few teams with Charlie and we hung out a lot. We often grabbed beers during the week when we weren't playing ball. We would talk strategy and tactics. "What if we shifted like this...?", he would enthusiastically propose. It was almost over the top but was fun and contagious. "I'm still hurting from that one," he would tell me a few days after a tough loss, assuming I knew the context of his grief without mentioning the actual game. Last couple of winters, Charlie came down and stayed with me a few weeks at a time in Mexico to live and work. We had a solid routine. He was usually up first in the morning and would make coffee. I usually shuffled out of my room later. He would be sitting like a buddha on the living room couch, legs crossed, two laptops and an external screen on the table in front of him. And he always had on these huge headphones. I'd be pouring my coffee and he would pull down the headphones and ask "So...what are you thinking for dinner tonight?" He had this funny, combination cautious and at the same time, slightly expective voice. As if he was just completing a conversation from the day before. I can still hear that voice in my head. "Dude...," I wanted to say. "I just poured my morning coffee. How the fuck do I know what we're doing for dinner?!?". But he knew I had thought of the plan already. We were in our routine and on the same wavelength. My relationship with Charlie, it felt like one extended conversation. Never had to reset or backtrack.

In Mexico we worked during the day, then go eat ceviche, and then bar hop the same bars every night downing cheap Mexican beers. We talked about all kinds of things besides softball. Music, culture, literature, life, etc. The conversations sometimes went deep, never dark. There was always sunshine every day. The beer was always cold. The next day was going to be the same thing. This is how I'm going to remember my good friend Charlie. I'll miss him forever.

It is so wonderful to see all these beautiful pictures of you all with Charlie, and to see him still looking so much like the boy who I loved to watch on the football and baseball field - and who defined so much of my high school experience.  I met Charlie in middle school at Lakeside, and I will always remember the moment I realized how funny he was.  We were doing improv skits in 7th grade drama class and Charlie had the prompt “opening a letter”.  He opened his (fake) letter and read, “Dear Charles, we regret to inform you that neither your GPA OR your blood alcohol level is high enough for you to be accepted to Washington State University.”  I think I almost peed my pants laughing…pretty good humor for a 12-year-old…but that was Charlie.

Throughout high school & the years right after, Charlie became my best friend & eventually my first love.  Although we had our (sometimes quite dramatic) ups and downs at the time, looking back, I cannot imagine a better first real boyfriend.  Each time we reconnected over the last several years, I was reminded just what a special person he was, and my memories with Charlie will forever be some of my most favorite.  From his sweet & silly poems after a fight to long drives listening to Paul Simon in the Volvo to meeting in Boston during freshman year of college…I will forever remember his kind heart, unmatched wit, and beautiful mind.

Sending so much love to all of you in Charlie’s life & who clearly loved him so well ❤️

Elizabeth (Beth/Lizzie) Maine (Ehni)