In Memory of Saulo Escalante

April 15, 2020 changed our lives forever. My brother left to a better place. It's hard for me to sit here and talk about him as if he is gone. I have trouble saying was/were/had. I prefer to talk about him like he is still here, and he is. His spirit is. I don't have words to express how I feel. My brother is the talkative one, and I'm the shy one. He is the one I argued and laughed with. He was not perfect, but he was perfect at being himself! 

As a friend said it best, "He was the core that ignited in others. The ambition we failed to realize we had. The shove we needed, the meticulous person full of surprises. He was beyond the norm. Saulo was human he had his struggles and battles. But God had his plan. A plan that at times in his desperation didn't realize, along with us all. So here we are lost, trusting in God that this is his plan. And one day we will meet again."

Here I am sitting on the floor thinking of the times Saulo would take us on trips. Pushed us to keep going. To see this, experience that. Saulo lived for the moment. If it wasn't for his tenacity his little niece would have missed out on so much fun. Yes, there was the time he dragged us and our mother up to Enchanted Rock and I wanted to smack him. Our poor mother. Even though the climb was hard for our mother, the view was worth it. Let's not forget the time he took me and my daughter to the Monahans Sandhills State Park, and we were all about to pass out from heat exhaustion. As frustrated as I would get with him. I could never stay mad at him because at the end of the day we would all enjoy it. My brother new that to get to the top you have to struggle, but at the end the view, the payoff is worth it. He found a passion for hiking up mountains and traveling. He knew how to enjoy life and bring joy to those around him. He left us with so many memories; great ones, good ones, not so good ones, funny and hilarious ones. All worth remembering.

I wish things would of been different. I wish I would have picked him up from the airport. Spending all day with him telling me about his trip. Instead, I'm here in California with my parents staring at his backpack thinking of the day I'll see him again. I look back at my lives past events and now know why things happened the way they did. This was the Lords will  and Saulo's destiny, and I'm grateful for the time the Lord gave me with my brother. Grateful to the Lord for having gifted me with Saulo's presence. He was the sun in our little universe. He was the energy that kept us moving.  Always positive and with a smile on his face. He touched the lives of many. Many of you have so kindly asked for a way to contribute to the expenses of his passing. Never did I imagine that I would search his name online and his picture pop up. He had no aspirations of being famous, just living his best life. I guess the Lord had other plans and wanted his name to be known just like Saul of Tarsus (which our father named him after). Thank you all for your kindness and generosity!