A GOOD EXPERIENCE, AND A GOOD VISIT WITH A GOOD FRIEND...

I have had a fascinating 24 hours that I must tell y'all about. And, I am going to make a recommendation to you in the process of telling ya'.

I have been going through a rough patch in my personal life. Well, it ain't actually me...it's my eldest son that is going through a rough time. But when a child hurts, Momma and Daddy do, too. And what hurts you even more is that you know that they are hurting 10 times more than you are, and that increases your "hurt" tenfold.

I did something yesterday afternoon that I have never done...and I want to recommend it to you if you find yourself in a tough situation. I picked out from my e-mail list:

One friend from birth.

One friend from First Grade.

One older cousin with a very straightforward approach to life.

Two friends I met in high school, but have not been particularly close to for all of those years.

One Great Uncle that I have great respect for. He is in his late 80's, and has seen it all...or almost all...

One friend I made 15 years ago.

One other friend I made about that same time...also an 80-something now (also has seen it all, and experienced most of it). I have always liked old people...always...even as a punk kid I would listen to what the old folks had to say.

One friend I have only made recently.

I decided to call upon people that have known me at a variety of stages in my life...some forever, some in my teens...some in my 30's...and in my 40's.

In my e-mail, I made naked my soul about the entire situation. I was careful to be completely accurate about the details of the situation. I spilled every piece of gut I had left about it (it ran on and on and on...I'm sure the recipients were just thrilled!).

What happened was fascinating! I had just asked for these friends to remember my son in their prayers. Now, some of them are not of my faith...but I know that they are all sound men that I trust. The responses I received from these men were truly, truly heart-felt, and very valuable.

Sometimes when you are in the middle of something, you just can't see the big picture. Sometimes when you are "hurting," you are too emotionally invested in your own "hurt" to look at the whole deal. And it is amazing that each one of these guys had a story to tell from their own experience...some personally, and some with their children, etc.

I would highly recommend to you that you trust others. Our old pride often pushes us to keep our mouths shut about what's screwed up in our life. I know that I struggle with trying to keep up appearances, while really battling with something. It is just amazing (but it should not be) how much of a load can be relieved by humbling yourself to your friends. It shows you that people really do give a damn. And they do, my friends...they do...

My first grade friend (who was also the Best Man at my wedding) picked up the phone when he read my e-mail, and immediately asked me to dinner, but I could not go last night. So, we met for lunch today. We really splurged...McDonalds. It was great (not the food...the visit). We talked about his problems, and my problems, and our kids' problems, and our siblings' problems, and America's problems, and also...about good stuff.

Heh...here we are!!! Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk...SO 70's.

(I'm the short one)

I can honestly say that I have NEVER, NEVER, NEVER walked out of McDonalds feeling better. I didn't hurl, or nothing...some tears did kinda well up a couple of times...but I didn't vomit.

(I gotta get out more often)

The older I get the more I understand how "common" some things are. Sin...struggle...pain...heart-ache...tooth-ache (nyuk). And LOVE is more common than you might think...