Thursday, March 26, 2009

Thoughts from the past

For years I have had places where I would periodically drop a few lines. It might be poetry or thoughts on life or scripture, but I have never really combined them all or pulled them together in any formal way. A couple comments from friends recently make me think that it would be beneficial to me to pull these together in a place where I could reflect more fully on them and add new thoughts. Hence Jacked up thoughts.

So here is my first installment:

When I was thirteen years old, my Dad died unexpectedly. This was obviously a major event in my young life. He had been faithful and very involved in our church. Many people told me that they were closer to God and their faith had benefited from knowing Dad. In the midst of loss, this was a comfort to me.

Over the next few years, I got to know a guy named David who was in his late thirties, early forties. David was not connected to faith or Christianity in any way. He was, however, funny and loved life. He was kind of a cross between George Carlin and Jack Nicholson from "The Shining." He had a wicked sense of humor and was actually fun to be round even though he was gruff at times. He always had a beer and a course joke or two. As a burgeoning "man" I thought David was pretty cool. He influenced me more than I could see at the time.

Late Spring my first year of college, I got a call from home that David , at age forty-two, had suffered a stroke and was in a coma. A short time later, before I could come home, he died. When I got home I went to see his family and learned the full truth. David had slipped into a coma after a severe, accidental drug overdose. He had gotten hold of some marijuana that was laced with a lethal dose of LSD. He slipped into a coma and never returned. His family was devastated.

This sent me reeling back to the day only five years earlier when we lost my Dad. Everyone around me talked of what a good man Dad was and how his faith had been a comfort to him and to them. My family, although in grief, had hope and a peace that carried us through those dark days. For David's family and friends, there was no such peace or hope. In my mind, I felt like I stood at a very real crossroad. One way led me on the path of life that David lived. The other led me on the path my father and lived. Reflecting on that at age 18, I wrote these words:

A man's life is like a span of white light that shines in the darkness.
It brilliantly flashes and then it is gone.
It leaves no mark, no sign of it 's ever having been.
Yet its memory leaves a bold and beautiful impression on those who beheld it.

This story and these thoughts still shape my life today. I want to live life laying a foundation for eternity for myself, my friends and most importantly - my family. This , I believe is God's desire and my purpose.

Jack

1 comment:

  1. I am intrigued now, Jack, to see how both these relationships have been such a shaping influence in you, AND how is has shaped you as a father and a mentor to SO many.
    Pretty amazing, pally.

    ReplyDelete