Skip to main content

I Have Cried A Million Tears

By Pamela
The first boy that I ever willfully kissed was a boy named Shannon.

We were in junior high. I was spending the night with my friend Jamie and we were hanging out on her porch roof. I remember him looking tan. Or at least tanner than I have ever been.  And he had thick dark hair.

In high school, our lockers where next to each other. Nearly every day between classes, he use to turn himself sideways so that he could block me from getting into my locker. His family nicknamed him "Fri". {We thought it was because of the Fry Gang from McDonald's but he would tell me years later that he had that nickname long before McDonald's marketing.} I can still hear the jingle. Oh, what a sense of humor he had!

While we never really dated, we were super close. {I would say the same thing about nearly everyone I went to high school with. You just don't go to a small school and not make lifelong connections}. I have always held a place in my heart for him. He was so personable. And funny. He could make anyone laugh and brought so much humor to my life.

circa 1987

After high school our lives went different paths. Determined not to live in the path of my elders, I went to college. Got a job and started working a career in public child welfare. Shannon on the other hand, struggled with a life of addiction. For years, we had no direct contact with each other. I kept up on him through high school friends.

I reconnected with him in the past year and  I am thankful for the time I have shared with him.  It was clear to me that he was not in good health. It was also clear that he was not seeking medical attention or doing much to improve his health. I got the sense that he had really given up on this life.

He died Friday night.

I have cried a million tears since then.

I have prayed for you many times since we reconnected. I have prayed for your peace. For your health. Now I pray for your family. Your mother, your sisters, your children, your grandchildren, your nieces  your extended family.

I pray that you are finally truly at peace.

We can't change Shannon's path but you might be able to help someone you love. If you know someone who is fighting addiction, please ask them to get help. Keep asking them.  If they won't get help, go yourself. You might learn some new way of helping them.


God Bless You, Shannon "Fri"
October 26, 1968 - November 30, 2012

Comments

  1. UnknownDecember 2, 2012 at 10:19 PM

    so sorry. Pam love ya Cathy
















    ReplyDelete
  2. a day in the life of meDecember 2, 2012 at 11:47 PM

    I am so sorry to hear about the untimely loss of a life and a dear friend. Truly, your advice is sound. If you can't convince them to get help themselves, go to see what you can do to help them. Thinking of you and your friend's family tonight.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My Weekend Project: A PVC Camping Lamp Post and Flag Holder

By Pamela
I have seen a few of these around campsites and I knew I would like to have one. The only problem that I had is The Husband. He already thinks we drag too much stuff with us when we go camping and if I had told him my desire to have a PVC Camping Light Pole he would have shut it down quickly! So, that leaves a girl with only one choice: Figure out how to do it by herself. I did some internet searching and found a few road maps on RV forums. They seemed easy enough! I visited the local hardware store for the supplies: An exterior post lantern light 2 inch PVC pipe (I used 5 feet but had to purchase a 10 foot piece) A 3 inch toilet flange A 3 inch to 2 inch Reducer PVC Glue A 12 foot electric cord kit 2 - 3/4 inch PVC Caps I also used a few supplies we already had on hand: White Spray Paint 3 1/2 foot - 3/4 inch PVC Pipe Drill Bits (1 inch and 1/2 inch) Tent Stakes The first step was preparing the lantern light. I could only find black i
21 comments
Read more

Liver Cheese: A Family Tradition

By Pamela
Today is an anniversary date. One of those dates you wish you did not have to remember but there is no way you can forget.  Fifteen years ago today,two days after his birthday, my father died of lung cancer. He was a lifelong smoker and his cancer was aggressive. His battle was short. He fought for six short months after his diagnosis. He knew the chemo was not working and that his time was limited. When he came to this realization he became the best dad in the world.                                                In the days before my father's passing, my family shared some memorable moments. One of those moments centers around the deli meat: Liver Cheese.I would not be surprised if you have never heard of it, or even never tasted it. But I was raised on it as it was one of my Dad's favorite things.  What is it? Well, it is a German food that is actually called Leberkase. It is bacon, corned beef, pork, and onion that is ground together and baked. It comes with a
17 comments
Read more

Tonsillectomy (Warning Photos!)

By Pamela
The Short Chic came down with a pretty nasty case of strep throat back in April. So, when The Boy started complaining about his throat hurting about 12 days later, I was pretty confident that he had inherited his sister's strep. Instead, The Boy was diagnosed with a peritonsillar abscess growing on his right tonsil.  We had to immediately see an ENT  Physician who took a needle and drained the abscess. He removed about 5.5 cc of puss from The Boys throat.and then told us that once you have a peritonsillar abscess you were high risk to keep getting them. The Boy's tonsils were now compromised and needed to be removed.  We were told to plan for a two week recovery so we worked a surgery into our summer plans. Between family vacations, summer sports, and the beginning of school The Boy had his second surgery. A tonsillectomy.  Pre-surgery prepping went well. It must be nice to be young and have healthy veins for an IV! The Boy had lots of pre-surgery visitors. My
1 comment
Read more