They thought I was dead.  When I called some of my military buddies to catch them up on my life it had been about four years so they were shocked yet relieved to hear from me.   In mid-1997 the tragic death of Giani Versace made world news.  The great Italian fashion designer was brutally murdered on the steps of his Miami home by the serial killer, Andrew Cunanan.  My friends had been following the story in the news and thought they saw an image of me flash on the television screen as the newscaster's story discussed the string of the killer's victims.  I'm not certain who's image they saw exactly but I was intrigued that they believed I was linked to such an infamous serial killer, killed by the same hands that killed Versace.  The thought that I was somehow dead didn't surprise me.  I often thought of death and struggled for years not ever being able to see myself growing old.

I did tell my friends that I never even met the infamous serial killer.  But I got sober, found Jesus, and met another man.