Darren Cobb

Darren was thirty-six years old. He was a father who lived for the laughter in his family, and a husband who was, and still is, the very brightest star of our lives.

On the 30th of December 2022, he walked through the door with the shopping bags, the weight of the life he was providing for us. Moments later, the world started to collapse. In his final, terrifying battle, he didn't look to any heavens, he looked to the only sanctuary he ever knew. He came to me. He sought me out because I was his North Star, the only soul he trusted to hold him as our world went dark.

He died in our room, in the very spot where the air is still heavy with his presence. I want the world to know the raw, truth of those final minutes: He was a king fighting the pain, while I had to hold the line between our children's innocence and the crushing trauma of the end. I fought for him until my hands shook and my soul screamed. I didn't just tell him I loved him, I poured my life into his spirit so he would have a bridge to walk across. I pressed my kiss against his lips, and in that soul shattering silence, he felt the energy of an unbreakable ten-year promise. He did not die alone. He died knowing he was cherished beyond the capacity of human language.

His journey from the December frost to the earth of February 14th, was the path of a legend. While a world exchanged paper hearts, he was honored with the eternal love. To be laid to rest on Valentine's Day was our testament to a man whose love was so vast it required a day of universal devotion to see him home. It was our ultimate and final vow.

He was always a seeker, fascinated by the mysteries of the cosmos. Now, he has returned to the stars. He has joined our ancestors, rising above the Cairn's to navigate the nebulae he once admired from below. He is no longer bound by an earthly breath, he is the solar wind, the moon and the starlight. He is the silent, protective watch over our children.

He came to the door with the life he had sought,
A man of the earth, in the mystery caught.
Though his heart gave its last in the heat of the night,
He didn't lose life, he surrendered to light.
Ten years was the spark, but the flame is for all,
A hero who stood though the world did fall.
From the frost of December to the Valentine’s grave,
He is the legend that memory will save.
Now look to the sky where the mysteries roam,
To the star-fields of gold that he now calls his home.
In the eyes of his children, in the stones of the earth,
Let the love of a father forever rebirth.

Always and Forever, my love.

To the people who read this: Know that he was our king, and a soul of design. He is thirty-six forever, unchanging and mine. He is the "Always" in the turning of the tides. He is the "Forever" in the alignment of stars.
He is loved. He is honored. He is eternal.
We look to the sky as he will always be there.