Meet the Press has been my weekend ritual for nearly a decade. Tim Russert and a cup of coffee. Other guys reserve time alone for watching sports on TV. My wife generously allows me one hour on Sunday morning to catch up on my favorite sport; Politics.

Today’s tragic news came as such a shock. I’ve come to rely on Tim’s no-bullshit guidance moderating the egos and agendas of world leaders and puffed-up pundits. He had a gift of bringing them down to earth. I’m really going to miss Tim Russert.

The only consolation is the most important one. Cliche’ as it sounds, he seems to have lived life to the fullest. He loved his family, always writing and speaking of his father and son. And his passion for politics fulfilled the rest of his time. Who could ask for anything more out of life? We should all be so lucky. We should all appreciate it as much as he did, while we’re here.