I was supposed to write a review of Contact tonight, but I didn’t have as much reading time this month as I expected, and a cherished actor died today.

This is hard. This is another celebrity death that caught me off guard with how much it affected me.

I didn’t know the man. I saw some interviews, and I’ve watched some videos where he spoke as himself. In those, he seemed very sweet, and I’ve never heard anyone say anything negative about him.

And then there are the characters he played. The man could act, and through his acting, he made us feel.

Several times this month, I’ve talked about movies and genre at arm’s length, as if maybe I’d guarded my heart and didn’t feel like all of those stories weren’t woven into my being. Star Trek:TNG is one of those shows, and then movies, that I escaped into. Jean Luc Picard was a father figure I admired and took comfort in after my Dad died. Patrick Stewart made it easy to escape into that show and love that character.

He always gave credit to the writers, but it was his thoughtfulness and specificity that elevated the dialog he was given. The writers gave him what he needed to perform, and he took what they gave him and made it more.

I’m not saying anything new, here.

I don’t know what else to say.

He lived a good, long life, and he was beloved. According to the death announcement, he was surrounded by people that loved him, and his passing was as easy as one could hope for.

Thank you for sharing your talent with us, Sir Patrick. You will be missed.