I got an email from a friend last week informing me that a mutual friend of ours had passed away at age 39. Although I was shocked and saddened at his passing, it didn't affect me as it normally would have because I am numbed by death at this point. An ALARMING number of my friends have died before reaching the age of 40 and at least HALF of them died before reaching the age of 30. So I feel blessed to even be able to even approach the age of 45 at this point. Losing so many of my friends so early has really made me value the friendships I DO have at this point but it also made me re-examine & reassess a lot of the friendships I have had for years. I have learned what true friendship is and I know how I expect a friend of mine to behave. I treat people the way that I would like to be treated and I only hope that the few folks that I have chosen to bestow the title of friend upon will do the same. I have learned that I can be "cool" with people and not necessarily consider them friends. I have gone through the fire for some of my friends and will continue to do so as long as they are here. But I will no longer ignore bad behavior in my friends, nor will I allow myself to be mistreated. Kathy Jones-Ferguson was my best friend in the world and I strive to be half the person she was during her short time on this earth. She was my confidante and I was one of the few people I could always be myself around. She never judged me and I could share my innermost thoughts with her. We always talked about going on a trip to Europe together one day. The closest we got to it was a Crab Fest in Baltimore, Maryland. It didn't matter though, we had a ball anyway. Being able to hire her as my assistant was my way of keeping her close to me. I got to see her everyday. Through Kathy I learned what true friendship is. Losing Kathy left a hole in my heart that can never be filled. I miss her terribly. I have had to trim my "friend" list quite a bit since the beginning of 2005. I understand now that friendships take work and I am willing to work to keep mine thriving, but I won't be doing it alone anymore.
I thank God everyday for the gift of friendship...and for my friends...I thank you for your love and continued support.
Tommy Brock, Kathy Jones, Stanton Tumpkin, Fred Clark Jr., Mummy Brock, Ronn Thornton, Orlando King, George Ewell, Don Ventura, Aunt Emma, Gramma Fernandez, Aunt Jessie, Debbie Pickens, Rand, Gordon Brock, Claudette Benjamin...........
I miss you all terribly..
Have a blessed and safe holiday all!
