At 10 p.m. Thanksgiving night, the story on this Earth written by Gilberto Reyes reached its end. Reyes died peacefully and painlessly after his second bout with Covid-19. He survived his first encounter with the novel coronavirus unscathed, never even requiring oxygen during a two-week long stay in the McAllen Medical Center covid ward in July. However, dementia and other complications meant he could not fend off this more recent attack. Reyes is survived by his son, Gilberto Jr., a grandchild, Alex Finn-Reyes, nieces Gabriella Nadine MackInday, Stephanie Garcia Hernandez and Sabrina Garcia, and several stepchildren. Reyes was preceded in death by both his wives, first in 1993 by Margarita Villareal Reyes, and then by Rosa Alvarez in 2020. Interment will be at Mont Meta Cemetery in San Benito at 2 pm December 2, 2020. Reyes put his heart and soul into everything he did and I suspect the world would benefit from following his example. When he worked, he plunged into his tasks full bore. When he cared about you, you knew you had a friend in any circumstance. He was a Valley boy in the truest sense - his connection to this patch of Earth was deep, passionate, and always requited. While his friends shared macho tendencies that he could often affect, my dad married a feminist and did not try to limit her public space. She adored “Star Trek”, he felt the same about an old Ford tractor. As my mom once said, they had little in common - except that they loved each other deeply. My dad tried to teach me more than I will ever recall. I will spend the rest of my life poring over these memories, these lessons in courage, strength and resiliency, he imparted to me. The world was often cruel to my father; despite that, he maintained a gentle nature. I will never understand how he did it. I will forever wonder why I didn’t try harder to understand his worldview. I’m left with snippets I will try to stitch together for the rest of my days. For example, my dad used to sing to me when I was young. I had no idea at the time he was singing children’s songs to serenade me during those hot summer days while I rode shotgun with him as he delivered asphalt, caliche, and black base to areas in Houston being developed. “El piojo y la pulga se van a casar. El piojo no quiere por no trabajar. Lo tiro, lo tiro, lo tiro, liro, liro. Lo tiro, lo tiro, lo tiro, liro, la.” Many years ago, I took some photos of the ranch in Lantana where I grew up. One of them struck me at the time as an abject failure. It depicts his favorite object in the world, a circa 1950s Ford Tractor which my father had painted brilliant yellow. In the photo, the tractor is out of focus and obscured by the shadows of the deteriorating barn in which it is parked. In light of my father's passing, this photo takes on a deeper significance that can be "read on multiple levels." My father tried his best to instill in me life lessons, one of which seems completely apropos now. It’s a dicho I’ve used many times in my college courses, one I would preface with the words: “My dad taught me....” “Si tú mal tiene remedio, no te apures. Y si no tiene remedio, ¿por que te apures?” Right now, as much as I want to, no me voy a apurar, coño. I’ll try to remember. Gilberto Reyes 1941 - 2020 QEPD ~ Gilberto Reyes Jr. You may sign the online guestbook, light a remembrance candle, or send words of comfort to the family of Gilberto Reyes at www.thomaegarza.com. Funeral arrangements entrusted to the care of Thomae-Garza Funeral Home and Crematorium, 395 S. Sam Houston, San Benito, Texas, (956) 399-1331.