history: My heart sank when I heard my favorite teacher from elementary school passed away. My heart sank when I heard about my favorite teacher from elementary school passing away. Ohhhh_comma_ that's so sad. I remember (long ago) when that happened to me. Did he/she live a good long life? I hope so. I heard it was cancer. He was always such a happy man. It's a shame.
current: Yeah, that is a shame. I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I know how important a great teacher can be your life.
next: Thanks for the kind words. He was a lot older than me so I hope he lived a great life. 