DAYTONA BEACH, FL - FEBRUARY 15: Bryan Clauson, driver of the #41 Texaco Dodge, stands on the grid during qualifying for the NASCAR Nationwide Series Camping World 300 at Daytona International Speedway on February 15, 2008 in Daytona Beach, Florida. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images for NASCAR)
Getty Images for NASCAR
Eight months after Lauren Stewart’s “world had crashed” with the death of her fiancee, Bryan Clauson, Stewart has met the man whose life continued on because of it.
“My heart was full, bursting, overflowing with love. Last night, my heart felt healed for the first time in eight months. My heart was happy because I got to feel and hear Bryan’s heartbeat again. Bryan’s heart is living on – beating inside of Dan the Heart Man.”
Stewart traveled to Omaha, Nebraska, to meet “Dan the Heart Man” and his family during the Easter weekend, but the idea of the trip was one she debated over with herself.
“I didn’t want to meet Dan. I did at first, but in the last month or so, I decided I didn’t want to make the trip to Omaha. I was doing it for my family – mainly for Bryan’s mom. I wanted to be there to support them because they have done everything to support me over the last eight months. I was scared. Anxious. Nervous. All of that. But the real reason I didn’t want to meet Dan was simple – he wasn’t Bryan.”
During her time with Dan and his family, Stewart learned he shared a few personality traits with Clauson and that he calls the heart he received “Bryan.”
“When Dan tells his life story, he has a way of making it sound almost boring (but he didn’t fool me!)…. almost like someone else I knew. Bryan always downplayed his career and accomplishments, especially when talking to new people. In that regard, Dan reminds me so much of B.”
Read the rest of Stewart’s blog to learn how Clauson’s legacy is being kept alive by “Dan the Heart Man.”
