The story: I was 16, he was 15. We are in a photo booth at Astroworld in Houston, Texas. Before it was associated with Travis Scott, it was a part of the Six Flags family of amusement parks. We hung out there EVERY weekend during the summers. Our parents would drop us off in the morning and pick us up at night. No supervision. And we were absolutely safe. I have been knowing him since the 2nd grade. We were BFFs who became more in middle school because we were the popular kids. He was a football player and I was a cheerleader. This followed us throughout high school and beyond. HOWEVER, when people see me in my hometown, the first two questions are invariably, 'How are you? How is Sterling?' I am almost 60! (Incidentally 2026 is our 40th high school reunion year, so I gotta get my mind right if I plan on attending). I must smile at these questions now because he has been dead for almost 6 years now. And had the nerve to die before my Mama transitioned on Thanksgiving 2024. The past decade has been rough! Anyway, he and I loved Prince, and we had always talked about making the pilgrimage to Chanhassen together. But, again, we were in other relationships, so it never happened. We only chatted 2 times a year. On 2/17 and on 6/5. To honor our special friendship, I sent this photo to Moises Suriel to be included in some of his artwork. That way, Sterling and I could always be together with our favorite artist, Prince Rogers Nelson.
