Mark Creath - A Friend

“Friendship is born at that moment when one man says to another: "What! You too? I thought that no one but myself . . ."” ― C.S. Lewis

This week I have decided to post only one article in honor of a good friend. A friend that meant so much to me, did so much for me and taught me so much about life. For me, he did these things but also for many others.

Like so many others, I hurt but am joyful for Mark.

I could write many stories to describe the type of man Mark Creath is. An article written by Jim Crumbley at The Warrior's Log does a fine job of explaining it. Take the time to read his honoring words to get a better idea how Mark impacted those around him.

What I can say is that Mark and I had many things in common, the "You too?" types of things that brought us a deep commonality. We had great times of laughter, sad times of sorrow and hopeful times for our futures.

Like so many others, I hurt but am joyful for Mark.

There are others that fill my life as friends. They are good friends and the type that mean quite a lot to me. But if we are lucky, we get to have a few of the very best of friends and Mark was mine.

I have written asking how is it that I was the lucky one. Lucky to have met this man. Lucky to have learned from this man. Lucky to have been part of his life. But I understand that it will never leave me; that my luck is now permanent.

Like so many others, my hurt will go away and joy for Mark will grow even larger.

That I am sure of my friend.

Stay inspired!

Being a Friend

What does being friendly or a friend to someone mean? There are ideas of what friendship are from many different people;

“True friendship multiplies the good in life and divides its evils. Strive to have friends, for life without friends is like life on a desert island..to find one real friend in a lifetime is good fortune; to keep him is a blessing.” - Baltasar Gracian

“A friend is someone who lets you have total freedom to be yourself.” - Jim Morrison

“A true friend is someone who is there for you, when he'd rather be anywhere else.” - Len Wein

“The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, nor the joy of companionship; it's the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him with his friend.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

There are also clinical definitions of friendship;

"Friendship is a term used to denote co-operative and supportive behaviour between two or more humans." - Wikipedia

"Friendship, the state of being friends (or friendly)." - Wordnet

It is a simple word, it is derived from Old English and is related to the word free. Other forms of the word are; freond, "to love, to favor" and frijojanan "to love".

From the Encyclopedia of Psychology, "research has shown that people who have friends tend to have better physical health and report a better sense of psychological well-being than those with weak or no network of friends. Friends provide support in three main ways: emotional, cognitive guidance, and tangible help."

I define friendship as having an open ear to someone that wishes to tell you their story.

It is small acts of kindness such as an open ear or an encouraging heart. Friendship can be a short exchange between yourself and cashier at the grocery market. It can be a co-worker, your wife or one of those long standing people you have known for years.

Friendship is a way of life that you project to others.

Be a friend, let it be a part of your life. And stay inspired my friends.

A Good Friend

“I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.” ― Helen Keller

Recently we visited the new home of some very good friends. It had been a while since we were able to sit and enjoy the company of each other. It reminded me of just how lucky and privileged we are to have friends in life. If you have no friends, it would seem a lonely and dull life one lives. Friends when gathered represent a strong bond with life itself.

It helps to reflect upon those friendships from time to time. So here are a few quotes to help you with that. When done, give your friends a call and get on with being friends again.

"The best kind of friend is the one you could sit on a porch with, never saying a word, and walk away feeling like that was the best conversation you've had." ~ Author Unknown

"Nothing but heaven itself is better than a friend who is really a friend." ~ Plautus

"Strangers are just friends waiting to happen." ~ Rod McKuen

"Fear makes strangers of people who would be friends." ~ Shirley Maclaine

"A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world." ~ Lois Wyse

"The best time to make friends is before you need them." ~ Ethel Barrymore

"A friend accepts us as we are yet helps us to be what we should." ~ Author Unknown

"Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive." ~ Anäis Nin

"A man's growth is seen in the successive choirs of his friends." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"I have friends in overalls whose friendship I would not swap for the favor of the kings of the world." ~ Thomas A. Edison

"The essence of true friendship is to make allowance for another's little lapses." ~ David Storey

"A friend is a person with whom I may be sincere. Before him I may think aloud. I am arrived at last in the presence of a man so real and equal, that I may drop even those undermost garments of dissimulation, courtesy, and second thought, which men never put off, and may deal with him with the simplicity and wholeness with which one chemical atom meets another." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Turn those strangers into friends and develop a great life time of friendship.

Stay inspired my friends!

Lasting Impact

For all are friends in heaven, all faithful friends;
And many friendships in the days of time
Begun, are lasting here, and growing still.
- Robert Pollok, Course of Time

There are days I reminisce about old friends and one particular friend from Nebraska came to mind. He is a good friend even though we rarely see or even get to speak to one another. Doc Watson is his name and we go way back having first met on the job when I worked several years ago in the Dakota Territory, also known as North Dakota and South Dakota. Like myself, he has gone through some difficult situations but has emerged on the other side of an open door that I have spoken about before.

What had me thinking of him recently is the upcoming wedding day of my daughter. With all of the pending preparation, there is a little bit of stress involved making sure all is ready.

A few years back, I had gone through the same thing with another daughter's wedding. As I am inclined to do, I simply asked my mother for patience. Even though she has already passed away, I talk to her from time to time. It was a moment that I needed some comfort and Doc's name came to my mind.

The reason he came to mind is that he attended my mother's funeral. He had very comforting and encouraging words during that difficult time. It was exactly what I needed during the time. So thinking about him, that feeling came back over me and all was well and calmed my concerns for the pending wedding later this month.

Even though he doesn't realize it, he helped me out that day and today.

Sometimes we find those that have gone from us, the memories remain and continue to impact our lives. We also find that people we know here and today, while far away, can have an impact on our lives. That is what your life is all about, being able to make someone elses life better.

You may not be there to see it happen, but it does.

Do something good for someone and it can have a lasting impact.

Stay inspired my friends!

Damn You

“Nobody looks good in their darkest hour. But it's those hours that make us what we are. We stand strong, or we cower. We emerge victorious, tempered by our trials, or fractured by a permanent damning fault line.” ― Karen Marie Moning

I can only sit in awe of the man I know faced with burdens that simply seem unfair. This man has been given a wagon of burdensome rocks too heavy to be carried by most people. A series of issues including health, job and grief have hung over and around him for quite some time.

And he still exhibits great faith in his God and remains ever positive in what life has to offer.

Damn you for making me realize my own faith and attitude have a long way to go.

Damn you for making me want to be a better person, more like you.

Each of us will have our trials, our tribulations and just bad moments. But each of us will have our triumphs, our success and glory in what we do. I just wish I could be more like this man through both the joy and pain.

And I will stand shoulder to shoulder with him in his darkness but also within the light he brings to my life.

Damn you for making me see greatness in possibility regardless of the circumstance.

Damn you for standing with me when all along I thought I was standing for you.

No matter what happens, we will see each other through to the other side of whatever lay in front of us. There will be great times to be had, a great life to be lived. All through it I will say thank you. Thank you for making me want to be more like you.

Stay inspired my friends.

Having a Meal

"Strangers are just friends waiting to happen." -Rod McKuen

Have you ever just invited friends, family, coworkers and neighbors to your house for a dinner? A mixture of folks that are just great to be around and to have around for a couple of hours. This form of human interaction is a great thing for your attitude.

My wife is great at putting these things together, getting everyone to bring something to eat and share with others. Everyone sitting around talking, building relationships and just enjoying themselves. It brings a lot of positive feelings when people of varying backgrounds come together in the atmosphere of your home.

These types of get-together events are good for the soul...not only your's but those that attend. Friendships are renewed and strengthened. It is a chance to have a positive effect upon those around you; to lift them and bring a bit of good into their lives.

So why do I tell you this? It is because I have written many times about impacting the lives of others. Of stepping out and doing something. Simply starting to place one foot in front of the other is the way to do it. So here is a way to do just that and its easy. Invite one couple or two; maybe your brother-in-law and his wife as well. Make it a potluck dinner.

potluck: a communal meal to which people bring food to share.

Make it simple and don't over do it. Nothing special to do, just chat and maybe a ball game is on the T.V. Allow people to just talk about anything. And yes, talking about the weather is just fine. But try something folks, step out and start impacting folks.

Find your friends again...find a stranger and make them a friend. Maybe even for breakfast some Saturday morning; it could change your world.

Breakfast Interrupted from Marlin Network on Vimeo.

Stay inspired, you, my friends.

Teamwork and Me

"Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results." -Andrew Carnegie

It might be that you work by yourself, sitting at your desk filling out reports, researching, or making projections. Maybe you are on the factory floor installing windshields, or in a day care tending to infants. It could be a myriad of things you do each day. But much of what we accomplish is done with teamwork present visibly and many times invisibly.

Take the story of Charlie Plumb, a navy jet pilot in Vietnam. He had seventy-four successful combat missions, but on his 75th mission, with only five days before he was to return home, Plumb was shot down.

Captain Charlie Plumb parachuted into enemy territory, was captured and spent six years in prison. He survived imprisonment and now lectures on the lessons he learned from his experiences.

After his return from Vietnam, Charlie and his wife were sitting in a restaurant when a man approached them, and said, "Are you Plumb the navy pilot?"

"Yes, how did you know?" asked Plumb.

"I packed your parachute," the man replied.

Plumb was amazed and very grateful to the man, "If the chute you packed hadn't worked I wouldn't be here today."

Charlie Plumb refers to this story in many of his lectures. He realized that there were anonymous sailors who packed the parachutes and held the pilots' lives in their hands, and yet the pilots never gave these sailors a second thought; never even said hello, let alone said thanks.

As Captain Plumb asks his audiences, "Who packs your parachutes?..... Who helps you through your life?.... Physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually?....... Think about who helps you; recognize them and say thanks."

There is teamwork involved in many parts of our lives. You know they are out there and you can find them. Look around your community to find them. Look around your workplace to see whom they are. Look around your home and church to see whom those people are that are on your team.

You will hear the phrase that there is no 'I' in 'TEAM' to make their point. I prefer to say that there is 'ME' wrapped up in the word 'TEAM' which means we only succeed because of those around us. And those around us succeed because you are part of their lives, their team. We are each an integral part of not only our success but of those around us, the team.

The people around you that have entered into your life. Your family, your friends and co-workers. Your team exists of many, not one. Realize that you are part of a bigger team than just one. See how much further your life and the lives of the team will achieve once we acknowledge and embrace the idea.

Stay inspired my friend.