To Jim...

I've written before that I am pretty much a loner, in fact in one of my most recent blogs I likened myself to an island. There have been many, many acquaintances in my life, many people that I am friendly with, but through the years there have been very few that I have considered a tried and true friend. As I was mowing the grass yesterday my thoughts were with one of my rare friends, for he has been ailing lately, and I have been concerned.
As I mowed I tried to remember the origins of our friendship, of when it was that he penetrated my defenses and went from acquaintance to friend. I've known Jim for well over twenty years, first from attending the same church together. But then, in 1991, as I was faced with a divorce, I hired Jim to represent me. As it turned out I wasn't just hiring an attorney I was making a friend- a better friend than I had any right to. Jim kept me on the high road throughout my ordeal when it would have been far easier to get down in the mud like so many divorces revert to. And when he saw the stress beginning to overwhelm me he took it upon himself to arrange a day of stress relief- in the form of paintballing. That was the seed of our friendship, and I'm forever grateful that he cared enough to plant it, and then to nurture it, for our friendship has been a real blessing to me.
Through the years Jim and I have shared too many meals together to count, played tennis, shared thoughts, experiences, laughs and tough times. I was blessed to share the same building with Jim the last several years he worked. Many days we would sit in one another's office and just share, just be friends. It is a rare and beautiful thing that we all too often take for granted until something happens and we find ourselves stripped of that friendship. I really believe that both Jim and I were always aware of how special true friendship is. I always cherished him calling me "my friend" in his Georgian accent, for I truly felt the genuineness of his friendship.
Today I learned that Jim's cancer, that he'd battled into remission for several years, had spread throughout his abdomen and treatment wasn't an option. My heart is broken at the thought of losing one of the few really true friends that I have, but that's just me being selfish. I know Jim, and I know his walk with the Lord, and I'm confident that for Jim death holds no sting. In that Jim and I were very similar- I find the prospect of meeting my Lord far more appealing than life on this earth, but like Paul said, we run the course laid out for us so when our time comes our Lord will say, "Well done my good and faithful servant"... To my friend, my dear friend, I say, "well run my friend. You ran the course laid out for you, and you stood by your principles and convictions. You were and are an inspiration. I only pray I can run my race as well. I love you my brother."
I will miss you Jim. But where you will be know that I follow, and I will see you again Brother. You can bet the farm on it...