I'm sure he is and will be a recurring subject for the near future. I didn't know him at all, but I've been reflecting on him, FA, and my own life as a furry since hearing news of his passing, this morning. I don't have any conclusions, because I don't think death leads us to proper conclusions. It gives us questions and makes us think and feel things, and then we sit with them for a while and they either stop or don't.

I've been on FA for literally half my life. I'm 32, and I joined when I was 16. Even as I've stopped posting and don't interact to the same degree I used to, this site is still a recurring "location" in my life. It's shaped me, helped me understand who I am, allowed me to explore myself with little to no inhibition. In the back of my mind, I was always aware that Dragoneer was in large part responsible for that. He owned the site, and in many ways, I'm sure, was responsible for the curation of its culture. I wonder if he realized just how many little, yet completely essential and important, moments in my life he indirectly facilitated. It's a strange feeling, being made aware of how a single person can impact you so greatly, yet you know nothing about them--and they, certainly, know nothing about you. Not even your name.

This site helped me feel so much more comfortable in my skin, and helped me sort out so many questions about my identity. It was also pretty important in my development as a musician and writer, even if only to give me a place to display what I was working on. I was looking through some of my old journals before typing this one up. It's kind of mind-boggling to see one from 2011 where I talked about finishing my first original novel and all the feelings I had about it. I've been re-writing and revising that book for nearly 13-14 years, now, and it's just about ready for querying. How nice to be able to look back at where it started and how I felt. How incredible that I trusted this site to serve as a time capsule for those thoughts and feelings.

All of this is to say, I'm grateful for Dragoneer and this site. Probably more grateful than I can actually express.

I'm also hoping to become a little more active on it, again. I went through a period of several years where I thought it might be better to try moving on from being a furry. I don't really feel that way, anymore. I'm much more at peace with who I am, and I'd like to continue being that way. Which is, of course, something else Dragoneer is indirectly responsible for.