I met Austin in my freshman theatre class my first day of highschool. We partnered together on a project in which we introduced each other to the class through a song. Austin came over to my house to rehearse the day after, and the first thing he said was “David… I can’t sing.”. So we rapped our project, and a lifelong friendship was born. We played scary videogames, traveled, wrote music, and sometimes just talked about life and what we were going to do out of high school. No one I have ever met, or will ever meet, was as positive and loving as Austin. I remember being blown away by Austin and his ability to always find the upside in any situation. No matter how many times we had failed to beat a level, how much school work we were buried under, or how serious our conversations were, simply being with Austin filled me with hope and love. Austin gave me and everyone he knew a kind of infinite love that we will forever carry with us, no matter what challenges we face. It is the brightest flames that burn the shortest, and though Austin may be gone, the light he put out into the world will never go out.