Jophil is gone.
...but Jophil is NOT forgotten. And never will be by many people that he knew in "real life", no doubt. But what about most of us? What about those who only knew the man as a collection of words, thoughts, and opinions displayed across the various electronic devices through which we communicated?
What about us?
Well, though I never had the pleasure of meeting "General" Jophil in person, I still feel like I knew him "by heart", to some small degree. Over the years since I've been here, I've always looked up to the man as an example of "a MAN"------not just "a male". To me, the difference between the two is that a man forms, shapes, and fashions his life by a set of codes of ethics that are important to "him". A man doesn't always bow down and side with "crowds" whenever doing so would cause him to lose respect for who "he" is at his core.
I always saw Jophil as a man of character. A man who I seemed to find myself allied with MANY times during many a spirited debate on this very forum. You "vets" know what I'm talking about. There are many of us here who have different views on many things, but it is (was?) for our greater good that we occasionally had those debates.
I believe differences of opinion, and how we've chosen to incorporate alternative views into our lives are some of the important building blocks that we use to build ourselves into better men and women.
I bring this up because that's how I'll always remember Jophil-------as a "class act". An officer AND a gentlemen. In other words, Jophil was not only a fighter, but a "fair" fighter. He had some pretty strong opinions, and a definitive point of view about many things.
I've personally learned a lot from him "over the internet". But what I've learned MOST from Jophil is the ability to be authoratitive WITHOUT being antagonistic when expressing a desenting viewpoint. I think THIS is something that has left an impact on me, personally.
Though we only spoke occassionally through PM, Jophil and I seemed to share a "somewhat" similar point of view on the important things-------and that's why I've always thought of him as a kindred spirit.
Well, NOW...that "spirit" has been set free. For Jophil, this war down here is over. And I believe now he's at peace. And the fact that his passing has left such an impact on so many of us who NEVER met him in person speaks volumes.
Number one: It's a testament to the power of the connections that can be made even without feeling someone's physical presence.
And Number two: It's a testament to how important, and how cumulatively POWERFUL the words are that we speak, write, or type to other people. What we do and say MATTERS. And we may never know "this side of Glory" how much they may have mattered to people that we never had the privilege of speaking to "in person".
Much RESPECT and PEACE to Jophil.
VU
