"Mr. Thomas Burr Has Accepted Your Request to Be Friends" and Why This is Important....

So, unless you are a classmate or one of my brothers, the name Tom Burr means nothing. Period. You will bypass this and think it too personal or too irrelevant. Tonight, I am posting this to capture my immediate reaction upon opening Facebook and reading the news of Mr. Burr's passing. Now, I took Biology with Mr. Burr. We dissected frogs, and fetal pigs,  and cats in Advanced Bio. He was our teacher. Not someone who, at that age, I had any interest in actually "knowing as a real person." Then, a couple of years ago, I created a Facebook account. Mr. Burr was one of the first people who popped into my FB world through other classmates. I remember thinking how interesting this encounter was. Here was this man who obviously had touched thousands of minds. I asked myself, "What do you honestly know about Mr. Tom Burr?" Well...thanks to FB it took very little time to understand fully that this was an amazingly talented, intelligent, and interesting "Teacher Turned Friend." FB allowed me to appreciate his interest in religion, in nature, photography, blogging, and of course in humanity. I have often questioned the amount of time that I have spent on Facebook. I have scolded myself for squandering moments and even hours. But tonight, I realize that without FB, Mr. Burr would have just been that Bio teacher from Ramsey High. I would have missed a great opportunity. With that, I will gladly steal as many FB moments as possible. I will remember Mr. Burr when I'm using my macro lens to photograph a great butterfly or a beautiful flower and the unknown possibilities of "Friending" someone you only thought you knew.   Rest in Peace, Mr. Burr and Thank You!