He Was Isaiah.

if you knew him, you know exactly what that means

Isaiah Joseph Watson was eight years old. He had just finished second grade.

He stood 4’10’ and weighed 92 pounds…details that never seemed to matter to him. Isaiah moved through the world with a joyful, blissful unawareness of size, sometimes dropping his full weight onto you like a Great Dane who hadn’t learned he wasn’t a lap dog. The way he moved and played, made people laugh, every time. That was Isaiah.

To know him was to hold several truths at once. Outside the front door, he was beautfiul, calm and gentle, thoughtful in a steadying way. Inside, he was a beautiful chaos— full of energy, feeling, always moving. He was strong willed and deeply sensitive in equal measure, and he had a way of making it unmistakably clear that he mattered to him.

Isaiah lived every one of his days with a fullness that was felt as much as seen. He loved without hesitation.

This space is an invitation to remember him, to come to know him more fully, and to sit, in whatever way feels right, with both the joy of his life and the weight of his absence.

A day with Isaiah:

He wakes up at 5:15 a.m., maybe 5:30 if he slept in, and is immediately, completely awake. The first order of business is waking everyone else up too, because why would anyone want to sleep through a perfectly good morning? He gets first pick of Minecraft or Rocket League. Pizza for breakfast. No debate, no negotiation. “Pizza.”

Then it’s Keiki Kingdom, where the only game that exists is “Monster,” played for as long as humanly possible. Back home to build forts outside with Carson. The pool. A movie of his choosing, and while the movie plays he is also building a brand new Lego set.

Then the greatest gift of all: no shower. No teeth brushing. He would also “not have to go to bed” at any time, and could freely “not fall asleep” on the couch until eventually, on his own terms, making his way up to his bed.

No grand adventure. Just his people, his pizza, his Legos, and nobody telling him it was time to wash his hair.