From the Heart

Shortly after my son Brad was born, my dad had a quadruple heart bypass. I remember well the day he was up on a ladder cleaning leaves from the gutters of his and Mom's home when he began experiencing chest pains. Mom immediately took Daddy to the hospital, and within a few hours, he had been transported by ambulance to a specialized hospital in Nashville to undergo the surgery. I also remember well the time it took for Daddy to recover ... it was several weeks before he began to feel well enough to resume his normal routine. For all the things I recall about that period of Daddy's life, there's one in particular that remains crystal clear in my mind. I remember the emotional change in Daddy following his surgery ... he went from rarely shedding a tear to crying at the smallest things. Don't get me wrong, Daddy was always tender-hearted and compassionate; in fact, my sweet dad had the kindest heart and soul of anyone I've ever known. But there was a difference in him after his surgery when it came to crying, and I quickly learned that was a common occurrence following heart bypass surgery. I recall Daddy's doctor saying that there wasn't really a medical reason for the overwhelming emotion that many people experienced, but he had a theory that it had something to do with the new increase in blood flow to the heart. In a sense, the post-surgery heart had been restored ... renewed ... recreated. Yep ... think about that for a minute.

Today, I had a conversation with one of my guy friends at work, a man for whom I have so much respect ... for so many reasons. I've written a little about him before ... he's my friend with whom I talk Lincoln and Subarus. He's my friend who hugged the daylights out of me last fall when I got honest about who I am. He's my friend who told me how much he missed my spirit and my heart when depression came so very close to doing me in. He's my friend who jokes and laughs with me about things I rarely joke and laugh about. He's an all-around good guy ... nah ... he's a really great guy, and I am blessed to know him. Following my conversation with him today, one word kept pounding in my head ... brother ... he reminds me of my brother Jerry. And if you've been reading this blog for a while, you know how I felt about Jerry ... he was one of the greatest guys I've ever known.

While many of the conversations I have with my friend are lighthearted in nature, today was different as we discussed a most serious event that's happening in his life next week. He said many things this afternoon that touched me, but it was when he talked about how everything in his life over the last few years has worked together to lead him to what will take place next week that I knew he was speaking to me from his heart. He was passionate as he spoke about his journey ... passionate as he talked about things happening for a reason. I told him about the day last February ... about how the events that kept me alive that day had never happened before or since. He told me I needed to come to his church ... he's told me that many times since last fall ... he wants me to find my faith again. He talked about unselfish acts ... he talked about growing and learning to care more about others than himself ... he talked about having faith ... he talked about life and living and the things that matter most of all.

So here's to you, my friend ... thank you for touching my heart today by sharing your own. Thank you for inspiring me and making me want to be a better person. You're going to do great ... you surely are, friend ... you're going to do great indeed.