Kelly McCoy's Blog, page 2

EI

There’s an excellent book in educational circles titled An Ethic of Excellence: Building a Culture of Craftsmanship with Students by Ron Berger. It’s one of my favorites. The premise of the book, as I understand and remember it, is that children need good models at the start of learning to see and know what excellence […]

Wrecked

When Cooper graduated from high school, he wanted to go to Puerto Penasco (Rocky Point), Mexico with 18 friends. I was okay with this, provided at least some parental supervision would be there. Me and another father, Jason, went with the kids and we stayed in a different hotel, away from the kids. We went […]

Grief Fingerprint

Today is our daughter’s graduation from high school. We are so proud of her and the hard work she has put in these last four years. Little Miss Sunshine (LMS) has had an amazing journey, she has a beautiful story to tell, and you would all be very proud of her.  Here’s to her new […]

As If

My heart longs for my son, Cooper. Every single day. As if.   It’s winter. My bones hurt from this pressing cold; I am cold from the inside out. The sky is sorrowful grey, sad and droopy. These winter clouds are pushing down into the treetops seeking life and color. Any color, even the bare […]

Monk or Millionaire

As I continue to marinate in grief, I feel and I think. I process. In thinking, I have three major regrets as Cooper’s father.  The first, I regret the day I ever put a smart phone in Cooper’s hands. Secondly, though it was not my choice, I regret that I did not push back harder […]

Riptide

Cooper James was born June 5th, 2000. Historically, June 5th is an interesting day. Here are a few examples, Cooper was born in Glendale, Arizona at what used to be Arrowhead Community Hospital. Cooper is my wife’s third child, and so he slipped right on out of that dilated cervix. Really, he kind of did. […]

Red Fox

In deep sorrow and grief, we lose track of time, don’t we? It was October, now it’s December.  My sense of time, in grief, is disrupted. I lack flow, I move in starts and finishes. My wife comes home from work and asks, “what did you do today?” and I don’t have a ready answer […]

Crippin

The day before Thanksgiving, me and the girls (my wife and daughter) drove out to the cemetery to be present with our son, pray for him, and to simply pay our respect and honor him. Because Poppy Jack (grandpa) is literally right next to Cooper, we did the same with him. We were also able […]

40 Days

Forty days is a spiritually significant number. I don’t know why.  I could go on. The Bible, Scripture, is filled with 40 day symbolism.  Across all religions, the number 40 is spiritually significant. For example, Buddha sat under the Bodhi tree for 40 days and 40 nights before experiencing Nirvana (some say 49 days; let’s […]

In Memory, Cooper James

Dear Family and Friends, We write this letter in deep, aching soul pain. Our youngest son, Cooper James, 23, took his own life in the early morning of Sunday, October 8th in the vicinity of Baker Wetlands, Lawrence, Kansas.