Darrian Chapman 1965-2002 (In Memorial) Rip Poem by Luke Easter

It is ten years and counting because life goes on,
Even though Darrian Chapman has come & gone,
Gone but not forgotten as the familiar saying goes,
Why such a young anchor talent, God only knows.

Mike Adamle posted October 31,2012, Halloween,
Reminising about the last time a friend he had seen,
Wee hours of the morning, soccer, sports bar, a fan,
"Whooping it up, a great time" this passionate man.

Friends and colleagues recalled his vivaioius energy,
All unaware of a 2nd heart attack, his mortal enemy,
An enthusiastic on air persona for his love of sports,
Dressing to play hockey with several joyful cohorts.

A youthful 37, probably was past his playing prime,
But a WMAQ Channel 5 sports anchor, right on time,
In Johnny's Ice House, severe illness suddenly struck,
Darrian didn't run out of goals, he just ran out of luck.

Red lights, siren, arriving Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's,
Paramedics doing all they could & at 37 it was no fluke,
Chapman suffered a 1st heart attack 6 years earlier at 31,
Dr. Robert Licthenberg, another blockage, over & done.

Warnings to prepare avoidence, negative, no tale tell signs,
For reasons unexplained Chapman simply ran out of time,
"I don't want to go through life like the boy in the bubble, "
Remotely possible he didn't slow down in the face of trouble?

Maybe life without any passion for Darrian wasn't life at all,
An aging champion not wanting to retire answering the call,
So his competitors in such a short time were duly impressed,
Obviously Chapman wouldn't do it if he couldn't do his best.

We're still left wondering why while kids holler, "trick or treat, "
A solid rock of the sports community who so loved to compete,
And yet reality can be superficial as no one really sees through,
Our dear friend it will never change the greatness we saw in you.