Myles - by Danny Glusman

{I did the Myles scream (you had to be there)}

That is the scream Myles and I would use to get each other to come out and play. 
Before there were cellphones, email and Facebook, we still managed to talk to each other, only we used landline phone (not even a cordless), or simply knock on someone’s door. Myles lived up a steep hill, so instead of walking up to see if he could come out, I would ride my SCHWIN to his house, and scream from the curb. If Myles were home, he would look out the window, then come running outside. The Beskinds moved to Kittredge Court in 1974, 2 years after we did. On a street with what seemed like hundreds of kids, Myles was the only one the same age and in the same grade as me, so we became inseparable after school friends.

Myles and I spent a lot of time together playing various games and going on all kinds of neighborhood adventures. We used to play outside sports such as kickball, football, basketball, frisbee, baseball, bad guy/good guy games, hide and seek, climb trees, neighbors jungle gym, ride our bikes, skateboards, build forts, catch salamanders/frogs and things in the creek, and explore the woods. Back then, by the way, I was known as the fast one. When we weren’t playing outside we would build elaborate hot wheel tracks, play with his Tyco race track (didn’t he have an uncle or cousin that worked for them? He always seemed to have the latest, coolest toy), board games, build all kinds of models (which we would often destroy later that day). Whatever we did, we did it with gusto. I don’t remember ever having to go to our parents asking for something to do, or saying we were bored. We were self-sufficient.

Myles and I were charter members of the Jr. Braves. If you ever watched TBS, the commercials were relentless, so we both joined. I bet Myles still has the t-shirt that we had to wear to the ballpark. Going to the games was so cool because you got to sit right next to chief knock-a-homa. All those years, we still never got to go inside his teepee. One time we were walking up to the stadium with my father, and a kid stole the ticket right out of Myles’ hand and ran with it. My father saw it happen and chased after the kid until he dropped it. I guess we learned the lesson, because I can tell you for a fact that Myles never let anyone steal a ticket to a ball game from his hands ever again.

Myles was a smart, mature kid with a mischievous streak. He was too smart to get into major trouble and mature enough to make parents think he was always innocent. But Myles could instigate other kids to act their worst, then sit back and take it all in. We had a neighbor that was a perfect fit for Myles’ instigative side, we watched him blow things up with firecrackers, and were right next to him when they all blew up in his hand. We were there when he shot rocks with his slingshot through another neighbor’s window, and again when he wiped out on his skateboard going down a hill that was way too steep. I am sure it was Myles’ influence that constantly kept me away from implementing those really bad ideas myself.

Myles was also quite the ladies’ man. I believe it was 6th grade when a cute girl moved to our street. I knew her from school, and Myles knew her from either camp or youth group. She moved in a couple of houses away. I think it was right around the time when I started to realize girls weren’t gross, and I thought it was awesome to have one of the cutest girls in school move in so close. That is until Myles taught me one of life’s important lessons, that GIRLS ARE BAD. Myles let his Paleolithic ancestry show by constantly chasing her and even throwing pinecones at her. Needless to say, that lesson stuck with me for a while, because I don’t think I was able to talk to a girl at my school until 7th grade. While in the hospital a few weeks ago, we started talking about the pinecone episode; Myles said that throwing pinecones was the only way he could express his admiration back then. The good news is we eventually outgrew those methods of communication and all remained good friends. At least I think we did…

Myles and I didn’t go to school together until I transferred to Briarcliff in 10th grade. He was among my welcoming committee, making sure I met and got to know all the “cool people”. So for the rest of High School I hung out with the other nerds, David Sanders, Luis Guzman, Gregg Rosenberg and Myles himself. We were the 5 amigos, AKA the guys that hung out together because they were unable to actually hang out with any girls. When we finally got to be old enough to pass for the legal drinking age, we shared our first beers together. Whether it was Schlitz, Stroh’s or Milwaukee’s finest we always searched for the best craft beers on the market. When we graduated High School, the 5 of us took a well-deserved break from out hectic academic life to spend a week in Ft. Lauderdale. I can’t remember any specific stories about that trip but the overall theme was that we were going to hang out in bars and meet women. Looking back, all I remember is the 5 of us hanging out on the beach alone. No girls, no drinks.

Myles went off to school at UGA and I would soon follow (once I got accepted). We weren’t the fraternity type, mainly because we already had so many friends, but we would usually get together on game days to do what college students do: drink cheap beer and talk football.

Myles took running seriously. Even though I ran the Peachtree Road Race just like him every year, usually by the time I crossed the finish line Myles was already home preparing for his annual July 4th cookout.
Even though we remained tight friends, our lives took us in different directions, but we always stayed in touch and would chat or get together a couple of times each year.

When Myles’ latest bout of cancer reappeared about 3 years ago, he called. The first thing out of my mouth was “are you calling me because you need bald guys to hang out with”? His answer was YES, he needed friends that can stay positive when the times get tough, and in case he lost his hair, it would be nice to have other bald guys to hang out with. He knew he could count on me.

When we ran the 2011 Rock and Roll Marathon together with 4 of the 5 amigos, after going through months of chemotherapy Myles still beat me by more than 30 minutes. The guy was fast, and showing no signs of slowing down. It wasn’t until the 2012 half marathon that I was able to finish at the same time as him, and this was after a year and a half of chemo. It was clear that the running was taking a toll on Myles at that time, but his spirit was as strong as ever.

It has been an honor to spend these last few months helping Myles make this final transition and break on through to the other side. All of his years of marathon training truly paid off. He showed amazing strength all the way to the finish line. It was truly my honor to be by his side in his final moments.
Chazak, chazak , vnethchasek. BE STRONG, BE STRONG and MAY WE BE STRENGTHENED.
Myles showed us all what true strength and courage are. It is my greatest honor to call Myles Beskind my friend.

…….. Adios My Friend