Coping Without DK

It's been one week since Derrick Keller, an 18-year-old former St. Louis Park baseball star, .

The last seven days have of course been tough on the Keller family, but as evidenced by a recent CaringBridge post, healing is occurring:

I have discovered in the last few days that faith is a big part of dealing with pain. Pastor Tania saved me on Tuesday. She really did! Linda and I were with DK right before he died. We both left the room as his blood pressure was dropping like a rock, and they were stopping all the life support. We did not want to watch him die.

My plan at that time was to get a bottle of scotch when I left the hospital, and make all the pain go away. I was sitting with Pastor Tania right after, and complained to her that after all that praying, and all the prayer chains, our son died anyway. I was very bitter. Tania looked at me, smiled that big grin of hers, and said in that excited powerful voice of hers, "No, No, Bob, Derrick is Alive"

That went through me like a strong wind. I understood it and I think I got it. Derrick is alive and in heaven. There has still been times that I have cried my eyes out and been pissed off beyond belief. That stuff comes and goes. Linda and I have stuck together like glue. We need to do that at this time.

Hitting a baseball is the single most difficult thing to do in sports. Losing a child has to be the single most difficult thing to do as a parent. I had thought to myself that if this was the end result I would be looking for a high tree and a short rope. I know I will still have a lot of terrible days, but I know Linda and I have a lot of support and we also know, "Derrick is Alive."

DK won't have to go through any of the pain and problems we have to go through here on earth.  Linda and I were talking about that today. We think we have a chance of getting through this because, DK IS ALIVE!!!

Thank you so much for that Pastor Tania. I will never forget it. Thank you for the wonderful service, and thank you for all the time you spent with our family at the hospital during Derricks last few days.

Thank you Blake and Aaron for the wonderful eulogies you both did. Thanks to all of you for the thousands and thousands of prayers that were said for DK. Thank you so much because, "Derrick is Alive"...