I first met TIffany Rochell Cumbo (TRC) when I was about 5 years old in the year of 1990. She lived 7 houses from our trailer, and we were friends for 13 years.
Around 1998, her and her family moved to Cornelius and then to Gaston, and to possible other places, which I lost contact with her as she moved out of the neighborhood, but we reunited in 2001 and me & Bill Bailey would talk to her in person or on the phone sometimes.
Tiff may have attended my high school briefly, but then went to another high school, but I think she returned for the 2nd semester, in January 2003, which means I started seeing her again at school, which put a smile to my face.
I was looking forward to the summer of 2003 where me, Bill Bailey, and Tiffany Cumbo, were going to have adventures, or at least that was what I was hoping for. I wanted to marry Tiffany when I was eight and nine years old. I drew pictures about it, but then Tiffany started having "Other Boy Friends" with friends and neighbors like Bryan (who lived next door to me, space 164), and Juya Sa, the brother of Bhakti, who also lived next door, and Bill Bailey, and others.
My mother may have heard of some typical jealousy schemes that Tiffany was cooking with her friends, instead of being in school, at Mary's Kitchen, on Tuesday, the 1st of April of 2003, the April's Fool Day holiday. Tiffany may have been mad at her current boy friend or ex, or with friends, neighbors, class-mates, enemies, and they may have had a plan to get even with them, but I was not there and I really have no idea what was going on.
Friday, the the 4th of April, I high fived Tiff in the hallway around 1 PM as lunch was ending. That week, or that year at school, I talked to the short Tiff about her guitar, skateboard, Avril Lavigne like punk goth outfits, where she lived, and I would call her sometimes, and I was going to hang out with her more, go take a walk with her, but we seem to have schedule conflicts or I was not certain if I should bend my schedule to make something work.
That Friday night, I thought about calling her but I was instead rehearsing my lines for my church play for Sunday.
On Sunday night, the 6th of April 2003, I got praise for my partially impromptu performance during the church play that I and the youth group did, at the Community Baptist Church in Hillsboro, Oregon, USA.
Monday morning, the loud-speaker announced, during the beginning of the 7:55 AM art class that I was in, that Tiffany died on Saturday, the 5th of April 2003.
I am not sure how she died.
It may have been Tylenol overdose.
It may have been drugs.
It may have been an infected scar below one of her eyes.
It may have been any of those combinations.
I encouraged people as I spoke at her funeral that year.
