Stephen Good, 1961-2025

Twenty-three years ago, I wrote this about my friend Stephen Good:

I have known and kept in touch with Stephen longer than almost anyone else I know. At times it’s been a challenge — it’s hard to be a Godless heathen when you’re corresponding with someone who is prone to starting sentences like “I remember what Jesus said about bowling…” But we’ve worked out a common ground (he leaves out direct God references and I leave out my constant questioning as to the actual existence of God), and I’m sure we’ll be friends until we die.

And we were.

Stephen died on Saturday.

I hadn’t talked to Stephen in more than a year. Our last conversation was prompted by a one sentence email from him:

I need to talk to you.

I called him. We had a long chat, about everything you can possibly imagine. Somehow, through everything that separated us—and there was a lot—we stayed connected and interested over almost 40 years.

In a text to mutual friend in the weekend, I described Stephen as among the smartest people I’d ever known, and among the most naive. Those two combined took him to places of fascinating creativity and exploration, and to places of great challenge and tragedy. Somehow, in all of it, he kept the glint in his eye, the enthusiasm for to being curious.

I will miss you, old friend.