More about relationships

I am the son and the heir
Of a shyness that is criminally vulgar
I am the son and heir
Of nothing in particular

You shut your mouth
How can you say
I go about things the wrong way
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does - How Soon is Now? - The Smiths

True relationships are hard to come by especially in Christian circles. True, loving friends experiencing life together are rare and this is something that the church is in need of more and more. If our relationship with someone can be defined in terms of a meal brought to them or a time when we had them over to our house that is something much different than one I feel compelled to call when I get a raise or when a tree falls on my neighbor's house. These are the relationships that God intends for me and the one He wants with me.

I remember tough days in our sons' infancies that were halved because my wife was by my side. A lot of times just her presence made the crying and fussing more bearable. She didn't offer advice (we both were, at times, clueless) but what she offered was even more profound: her presence. She was there with me not looking to escape the situation but willing to hold my hand through it. I wasn't a project or a ministry opportunity to her. I was her friend and we were in this together. We set out together and when we laid our son in bed we rejoiced together.

That is relationship and she is the one whose hand I want to hold in good times and bad. I do not envy the man or woman who does not have someone like her. Nor do I like to think of a life without her.

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