All posts by johncohn

Friday night – celebrating Sam

November 23, 2013 johncohn 1 Comment

The 22nd is the day that Sam donated his organs to save 4 other people. You can help us honor Sam by having a conversation about Organ Donation with your family. You can learn more about it here. I hope it never comes up in your family, but if it does, the most important thing is that your family knows your wishes…

today is also the day this year that we invited friends over to remember sam . more than 60 of our friends.. many of them Sam’s freinds came by for a potluck tonight.. it was so great seeing everyone. we had picture books of sams life out. folks got a chance to look through them.. mostly folks just ate, drank and hung out..

gabe and sue look identical from the back of the head

we all did a red bull toast

then we had a birthday cake for kevin who turned 22 (I think) tonight..

speech !!!

when the time was right, max, gabe and I and some friends snuck out to the lab and prepared the fireworks for the burn..

i’d built a burning man out of some old broken Adirondack chairs we had.. gabe , max, colin, mason and I got the guy loaded with fireworks and doused with liquid courage

then we lit three roman candles and took aim..

it went up like rocket !

after the fire, it was inside for samstones..

A great evening … made us all feel so good to be surrounded by that much love

Thank you all for helping us remember our great kid..

we love you all

nite all, nite sam

-me

Thursday night – Missing our Sam

November 21, 2013 johncohn 2 Comments

Today is the day we mark Sam’s death. on the 20th he was hit by the car and his soul left his body, on the 21st he was declared dead and on the 22nd his organs went on to save 4 other people. Every year we relive that process.. . Today’s the day we burn a candle for Sam. In my tradition it’s called a yahrtzeit (יאָרצײַט) Literally ‘year time’ ..

I’ve been looking at pictures of Samlast night and today… We came across this picture last night in one of our photo albums .. it’s a picture of a device I made for sam to be able to play guitar with his foot when he broke his right elbow.. he broke his left elbow.. … or actually I broke his left elbow a couple of years earlier.. he was always bouncing back from something.. indestructible it seemed to me.

Today i woke up trying to figure out what I was feeling..I didn’t work today… which felt right…

I miss my boy so much.. at the same time.. I feel pretty much at peace.. never thought I’d feel that … I walked around the house looking at sams picutres and sams things..

Midday we took the first of our hikes up Bolton.. that’s become a tradition for us on Sams birthday and on the day he died.. Bolton was like a second home to our kids.. so we feel a strong sense of Sam there..

. Today a few freinds joined us.. but being midweek, we’re going to hike it again on Saturday at noon. if you want to join us. please meet at the resirt at 12..

most of us climbed hte rickety ladder to the top of the fire tower..

we placed a samstone, shared a swallow of tequila for sam.. and lit a smoke bomb..

seemed like a fitting tribute to a great guy.

the rest of the day passed queitly.. a few friends called and droppde by.. it was just as it was supposed to be..

later, gabe picked up thai food and we had take out at home..

before we ate, we had l w a red bull toast to our brother and son..

the food was delicious.. the day was bitter sweet

We’re all gathering here at the house tomorrow night for a pot luck and a night of sam stories and making sam stones. come if you can..

on Saturday at noon, we’re hiking bolton again.

my son.. you are so much in our hearts and in our lives… and will always be..

goodnight my son. We love you foreever

-me

Wednesday night – the call

November 20, 2013 johncohn 13 Comments

seven years ago tonight we received the call that Sam had been hit by a car… that moment and the seconds , minutes, hours and days after that call are burned into my heart in a way that I can’t describe. they’re part of my memory that I really cant go to even still, yet i can’t.. and will never… forget… i would give anything in the world to be able to go to the day before … even the minute before, when I could have… (could have what ? )

what i can go to in times like this is the other call from that day, a call that came earlier.. Sam called me that morning, i didn’t get to pick up the phone, but i got his message on my voicemail… I carried it around with me until i had to give up that phone… then I recorded it.. here it is

the last thing Sam said to me was that he loved me.. i can live with that… i have too

good night my beautiful son, you are still so much in our hearts..

we love you

-me

Tuesday night – worlds best dad

November 19, 2013 johncohn Leave a comment

today i got a note out of the blue from two guys I met in the desert at burning man in 2008. Here’s what it said…

Conversation between Josh Gross and John Cohn

Josh Gross

5:48pm Nov 19

Hey John,

Don’t know if you remember me but I certainly remember you and your Sam Stones. Back in 2005? during Burning Man (the American Dream) we chatted before I went off to attempt a rocket launch with some ashes. Well, we finished that launch and made a movie about it. Its been out for several years, did the festival run..etc. Anyways, you’re in it! And Samstones also appear at the very end of the credits. Your story really touched us as we neared the end of our journey that year and we wanted to pay you homage. Anyways, here’s a link to the full film if you’re interested: https://www.facebook.com/l/eAQEbxXqRAQFCkdDn2a6vslt3UWoJB5RanCFElLwbFxqGgQ/https%3A%2F%2Fvimeo.com%2F35067118 Hope all is well and thanks again for the inspiration!

Worlds Best Dad

Shot in 2008 on a micro budget, we finally were able to finish post (after sitting in a rough cut fo…

I checked out the movie,., and it is really great.. heartfelt, fnny and sad..

turns out you can see me give them a samstone at 1:11:58

and the move closes at 1:23;37 with one of the guys holding a samstone..

I so totally remember those guys…. I dug up my pictures of that day on my blog here http://johncohn.org/base/2008/08/30/friday-afternoon-more-from-the-playa/

here’s the picture you see me taking in their movie.. how weird is that ?!

nice to get this today.. tomorrow we mark the 7th year anniversary of sams death..

the world is a wonderful, funny and sad place soemtime