Dear Jack:
It has been a week or so that I learned of your health ordeals and have accumulated enough courage to write now. I am terribly saddened by the situation and really do not know what to say, except to remind myself how lucky I have been to have a friend like you. I still remember the times when you were there for me at MIT when I started my career in combustion, then helping me at various stages in my academic career with your supportive letters and words. I also vividly remember the colloquia we had on your retirement, when I still felt like a graduate student. Your youthful appearance, which hardly changed over the years, made many of the colloquia attendees jealous. The current situation reminds me again how lucky we all are to have lived meaningful and productive lives with our friends and loving families. Nevertheless, time is unstoppable. I started looking at the mirror and ask: Who is this old man? What happened to the young Selim I used to know? There is an old saying in Turkish "Getting old is the price we pay for living". To this I add a corollary "Our lives are made by the choices and friends we make during this journey". In my case, I had the fortune to have your friendship. I am not sure when we will meet again, but my thoughts are with you and with your family. My best wishes and warmest regards.
Your friend Selim Senkan
PS: Happy 70th birthday soon.
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