I write this with a tear in my eye, as it’s the anniversary of the death of an incredible person.

Jim Gosling was a college pal. We were in the Singing Hoosiers (think Glee for undergrads) together and laughed ourselves silly for three years.

Our birthdays were two days apart (plus one year). My second year in Singing Hoosiers, Jim arrived, along with Vince and Mark. All so talented, full of promise; all from Elkhart.

You’ve heard the term “triple threat,” right? Well I’m not sure what to call Jim, as singer/dancer/actor was just the jumping off point. He played piano beautifully. And composed music.

But instead of being a serious, tortured artistic soul, Jim was lighthearted, kind, and often just silly. Hanging out with the Elkhart bunch meant music, laughter, and friendship.

Toward the end of my senior year, we received a new vocal piece to rehearse. It was titled “Approaching Storm.” By James Gosling.

Jim! No way! You wrote “Approaching Storm”?

Jim grinned at us and accompanied the 100-plus singers on the grand piano. It was stirringly beautiful.

The summer after my senior year, Vince and I took a roadtrip to see Jim perform at Opryland. He was in I Hear America Singing and it was a thrill to see him up there on stage again.

We stayed in touch at Christmastime (back then, it was by letter or card) and then I stopped hearing from him. He was busy with his career in L.A.; I’d just had a second child. We’d reconnect someday.

Sadly, in the spring of 1994 I saw Jim’s name listed in the “Singing with the Angels” portion of the Singing Hoosiers newsletter. (It wasn’t really called that, but I think Jim would approve.) They listed a graduation year that was off by a decade, so I held my breath and called Vince.

It was true. Jim was gone. Fucking AIDS took him. Our friend.

Memories of Jim’s smile, cackly laugh, and incredible talent have stayed with me over the years.

In fact, when Gary and I learned we were expecting our third child in the late ’90s, I suggested James as his name.

James Michael Werne, it was. Born August 12, 1999.

Although he’s majoring in math and electrical engineering at college, our James is also a musician. Guitar, piano, trumpet, bass.

Our James also writes music. One piece in particular took several years to complete. He worked on it with a fervor I hadn’t seen before.

When at last it was ready for me to hear, James told me the name: Approaching Storms.

I’m no longer nearly as dramatic as during my college years, but I gasped. Although I’d told James about Jim, I’d never mentioned the name of Jim’s composition. It was Easter Day 2016.

I can just picture Jim reading this and dancing about the room making ghost sounds. Dancing with a twinkle in his eye and a proud grin for his namesake.

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