Christopher Hitchens

     I did not know Christopher Hitchens until he died.  I had not read any of his works, nor seen any of his television appearances.  Missed all his lectures, debates, and book signings.  To me he was a cipher, a zero.  Then he dies, and instantly there are obituaries everywhere, encomiums  galore, sprouting like dandelions on a warm spring day.  Such praise of a man I had not heard of before piqued my curiosity, and after reading laudation upon platitude I find him a kindred soul, but too late this recognition.  Ah, but  the printed word is nigh immortal, and I have a lot of reading to do to catch up with Christopher Hitchens.  But I aim to try.  To paraphrase someone else..."The world is a much more ignorant  place now".