James Van Der Beek Shown in Wheelchair in Tribute Photo From His Final Days

James Van Der Beek’s friends are honoring the special moments they shared with the Dawson’s Creek actor in the days before his death at the age of 48.

After Van Der Beek’s wife announced on Wednesday that the actor had “met his final days with courage, faith, and grace” amid a battle with colorectal cancer, his friend, Stacy Keibler, took to Instagram to share a photo of the star sitting in a wheelchair as he watched the sunset with her.

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“Spending these final days with you has been a true gift from God.
I have never been so present in my life,” the former WWE star wrote in a message to Van Der Beek. “When you know time is sacred, you don’t waste a single breath. You don’t rush. You don’t scroll. You don’t worry about tomorrow. You sit. You listen. You hold hands. You watch the sky change colors and you let it change you too.”

“In these past days, you taught me more about being present than any book ever could,” she continued. “You showed me what it looks like to trust God’s plan, even when it breaks your heart. Especially when it breaks your heart.”

Looking back on the evening in which she watched the sunset with Van Der Beek, Keibler recalled the Varsity Blues actor having shared “your wisdom, your hopes, and the promises we made to each other.”

“We talked about how this world can feel upside down…and how maybe heaven needs your spirit now to help steady us down here,” she continued. “And just as the sun slipped away, a shooting star crossed the sky…as if to remind us that none of this is random.”

Praising Van Der Beek as a “gift,” an “incredible husband,” and an “extraordinary dad,” Keibler said he showed up “steady, strong,” and “devoted” for his wife and six children.

“It has been an honor to stand beside your family in these sacred moments,” she added, noting, “It’s pretty incredible how someone can fight so hard for so long, travel the world battling so much, and somehow still look so handsome doing it 🙂 That smile never left you.”

“You have given this world so many gifts. Your presence was a bright light in my life, and in so many others,” she continued. “And while your physical body may no longer be here, I know your spirit is doing big things. I feel it already.”

“We may have lost a good one here on earth… but heaven gained something extraordinary,” Keibler shared. “I will think of you every time I watch a sunset. Every time I see a rainbow stretch across the sky. I’ll know you’re there.”

Looking back on a “lesson” she’s left with following Van Der Beek’s death, Keibler concluded, “The present moment is everything.
Love the people in front of you.
Say the words.
Watch the sunset.
Trust God, even when you don’t understand,” telling her late friend, “Thank you for changing me.
I will carry you with me. Always.”