Curt,
As we age, losses start to pile up... parents, friends, then next we're in the hopper...
Guess it's the natural order of things... Surely doesn't make it easier, but as Tom Selleck said in one of his Western movies, "Tis a poor thing to fear the inevitable", then he adds it was said by someone who wasn't dying...
Truer words never spoken.
Even Jesus cried for his friend Lazarus, so grief of loss is also natural. I will say a word for you, your friend and his loved ones.
Carry on!