It’s a tough day for we nerds. They don’t get much tougher.
We now have to say goodbye to the best Professor Charles Xavier to lead the X-Men (sorry James McAvoy!) and the quintessential Star Fleet Captain Jean Luc Picard after news emerged yesterday of the death of Sir Patrick Stewart at age 86.
To those of us who were fans of his amazing acting, his remarkable humility and grace, and his irrepressible sense of humour, he was larger than life.
Most modern fans of his work on the big and small screen will tell you about their favorite Star Trek Episode, or how much they loved the new Picard series or his memorable speech at the Xavier Academy, but he was so much more than that.
To his co-stars he was more family than friend, a kind soul who always had time for a helpful word or a boisterous laugh.
And no one laughed along and celebrated life like Patrick Stewart!
From appearances on Sesame Street, to Saturday Night Live to a hilarious montage of him singing Country Classics, Stewart was both a Knight (literally) and someone who could laugh along with we commoners with a zest for life we always envied.
Beloved by fans and those who knew him best, Stewart made every day memorable and filled it with positivity, laughter and memorable moments.
He made us believe in a better future, by making the present better with his soothing voice and ageless smile.
I’m Paul Martin and that’s what I see looking Beyond the Headlines.
