I awoke this morning to a dreadful email. One of my oldest friends wife has had breast cancer. Has had it for awhile. She contracted a debilitating headache two nights ago and to make a harrowing and horrible story shorter she was taken by ambulance to the hospital and had emergency surgery on her brain, where they found bleeding and a small tumor. My friend is now at his wifes bedside, stuck in a purgatory where he awaits to see how the love of his life will be when she wakes up. This woman and I do not have a lot in common, but what we do share is unconditional love for my friend. Which makes me love her. In fact, he has been tirelessly holding fundraisers for her over the last six months and doing the lions share of raising their beautiful young daughter. On the day of the first fundraiser earlier this year, the woman I was dating, knowing how emotional and important a day and night it would be for me, still made the day about herself and her issues. manipulating me throughout the day so that I would not know if she would be attending this meaningful event with me. To no surprise, once she did attend, she did not offer to nor donate any money. She is and always will be the exact opposite of my friend, who is a kind, gentle soul who loves the ones around him with all his heart, never asking for anything in return. This is a longwinded way of saying that when I read his email this morning, the first thing I thought of was that life is too short for bullshit. This city is full of users and abusers. Flakes and snakes. Im over them all. There are some essential things that are important and vital to life. And the rest of the noise and bullshit and selfishness needs to be avoided at all costs. These are the things I know I need to do as a man: 1. Be as great a father as possible, which means being a kind, loving, generous, passionate, honest man, because more than anything else I am a role model to my kids. 2. To be a good son to parents who have always been there for me, unconditionally. 3. To be a good friend, for I am blessed with amazing people in my life. (Ann Cherico, being a good ex-husband is on the list, but a little farther down, somewhere between eating healthy and rooting the 49ers to their 6th Super Bowl win. Sorry). So today, please give a kiss or hug to your spouses and partners and kids and/or pets. Water a plant. Soak in the sunshine. Whether youre religious or not, please send positive thoughts to my friend and his wife and their little girl. And no more bullshit. Seriously. Life is too short.
Posted on: Fri, 05 Sep 2014 17:59:06 +0000
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