Dear Larry Langford,

I’m sorry I haven’t written sooner. I guess I was just too distraught to put my emotions into words. Or I was grounded. Take your pick. Anyway, as an avid fan of yours, imagine my surprise upon hearing the news of your arrest. The Federal BI people have no heart.

Having only lived here a year, I don’t know the full story of why you were arrested. To me, you’ll always just be the man who inspired me to be more than I could ever be. Even if doing so would be a physical impossibility. Like when all those haters told you that Birmingham couldn’t host the Olympics? Did you take that? No. You never gave up. When people told you that your so-called ‘renovation’ of five points looked like crap, did you concede? No. You stood up for the stupid decision you made.

I’ll always look up to you in that respect. But frankly, I’m a little let down. My Birmingham Olympic fan site was forced to shut down due to low traffic. How could this be? We were going to do great things, Larry. I designed t-shirts. And now it doesn’t mean anything. What about the dome? Are you just going to let your dreams die?

I know this is hard for you. Believe me, it’s hard for all of us. Despite my internal conflict, I know that Birmingham can go nowhere but down without you.

‘Near, far, wherever you are, I believe that my heart will go on…’

Noah Cannon