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Light a Candle
This will not be a normal Biography because Bug was not a normal person, he was special to everyone who was lucky enough to have known him. He was my Uncle, my adventure partner, and one of my best friends. I do not know all the details of Bug's life, but I will do my best, and I look forward seeing your uploaded pictures, stories, and comments.
Johnny Thomas Rushing, Jr., AKA Bug, was born on October 30th, 1945. He was born in Walton County Florida, to Johnny and Thelma Rushing. Bug's early childhood was spent in Florida, along with his younger brother. Bug loved to tell the story of their pet pig, Glutton, and how they would ride on him like a horse.
The family relocated to Long Beach, California, around 1953. This is where Bug would forever call, "home". He attended Poly High School and graduated in 1963. He worked as a custodian for Harbor General UCLA Hospital, and even as a Butcher for a while. Bug often spoke of the $99 bus ticket he purchased right after High School. It was one ticket that allowed him to travel all around the entire country, hopping on and off the greyhound as many times as he wanted. He learned a lot about who he was, and who he wanted to be while on this solo journey. He loved sight seeing and people watching.
Bug's life was full of journeys and adventures, he passionately loved road trips! He loved driving the 10 freeway all the way to Florida to visit family, taking the scenic route up the coast to San Francisco, looking for aliens in Roswell, New Mexico, hanging out with loved ones at Mammoth Mountain, cruising down to San Diego, visiting the rain forests in Costa Rica, smoking a Cuban Cigar at Atlantis in the Bahamas, and many many random Vegas trips.
Bug was such a free spirit! Not only did Bug enjoy traveling, reading, current events, movies, and classical music, but he was also an amazing artist. In his 20's, he passionately enjoyed making stained glass windows and sculpting with clay and ceramics. His favorite pieces are the Pigasis he sculpted, and the stained glass sailboat that he made. Around 1968, Bug left home and headed to the Monastery to pursue his spiritual calling and do some soul searching. He took a vow of silence and was on the road toward becoming a Monk. Two years into his stay at the Monastery, he was needed back at home. He packed up and returned home right away. Bug was always willing to drop everything, at a moments notice, to help others. He believed that if you are able to, then you should. He would go above and beyond to help the people, loved ones and strangers.
Within two weeks of returning home, Bug's entire body began to hurt. All at once, he was hit with arthritis over most of his body. He would undergo treatments and take medications the rest of his life, and was declared disabled. Anyone who knew Bug, knows that he constantly dealt with one thing after another when it came to his health. To Bug, this was both a curse and a blessing for so many reasons. The curse, of course, was that Bug suffered. But the blessings were countless. Bug did not have to work, which gave him a freedom that most of us do not get to experience. With this freedom, Bug spent his life caring for others, traveling, going to malls, eating out, watching movies, maintaining a koi pond, helping others, and most importantly to him, spoiling kids.
Bug had a soft spot for kids, I don't think there was a kid around that wasn't spoiled by Bug at some time or another. He said that kids are special, innocent because they have not been jaded by the world yet, and that you should spoil them, and let them be children for as long as possible because "getting old sucks". He was extremely proud of the fact that he was a godfather, and was constantly bragging about his two goddaughters, Silvia Patricia Yescas and Isabel Yescas. He always looked forward to spending time with the girls, taking them to Knott's Berry Farm, the buffet, malls, and arcades. Bug enjoyed having family nights, bbq's, and any kind of get together. We would have weekly family nights where Bug would love to spend time with the kids, play games, and have dinner together. Bug loved to spend time in Florida. Our East Coast family members meant a lot to Bug, and he tried to see them as often as he could. He was the glue that kept the California family close with the Florida family, and got all of us together so many times to form our own relationships.
Marc, Scott, and myself had the privilege of living with Bug for the last 4 years. To us, Bug was not only family, he was a friend. We all enjoyed one another greatly, and often shared moments of laughter and conversation. Bug would frequently cook for the family, tell us what he read in the newspaper that day, insist we all eat dessert, and prank Scott.....he loved pranking Scott!!
Bug passed away on October 8, 2020, after his second battle with cancer. Through everything, he had a heart of gold, an amazing soul, a fantastic since of humor, and a generous spirit. He was a special man, and a good friend to a lot of people. He will be missed so much. One thing I will never forget is that Bug kept his faith through all of his ups and downs. He had a close relationship with the Lord, and knew that he would be in a better place one day. No matter how bad things got, or what he was going through, Bug would always look at me and say, "We are so blessed." He would say that there are always going to be people less fortunate that you, some that are more fortunate, and that we should always count our blessings and be greatful for what we do have.
Here are some random Bug facts that I wanted to share:
Thank you for being a part of Bug's life, and for visiting his Memorial Page. Please share your own memories, pictures, videos, and random Bug facts.
