It was an especially early morning for me. Not that I woke up any earlier, but I did have somewhere to be quite early. The fire fighters’ union paid my way to a training session that was actually designed for peer support in recognizing and handling fellow firefighters who were experiencing depression or suicidal tendencies. There were some pretty intense moments as the guys from Galveston had to relive the death of a fellow fire fighter not that long ago. They came through it all really well, though. I enjoyed lunch at Shrimp and Stuff, the downtown version, with three of the fire fighters from the Dallas area. Their department sent them to the training to get a peer counseling team started up there. The training continues all day today.
However,
I won’t be able to attend. I am officiating a funeral in Santa Fe today. A long-time Seasider who moved there a while
back, Boyd Chipman, died, and his service is at 1 today. Boyd was a great guy
to have for a friend. He was always
willing to give the shirt off his back – or the contents of his freezer (read
here speckled trout fillets) for a fish fry to send kids to camp – to someone
in need. And his sense of humor was
infectious. I loved the way his eyes
kind of lit up as a grin spread across his face. And once he started laughing, tears would
inevitably leak down his cheeks. Sometimes
he couldn’t even finish his story, because he knew the punchline and would get
cracked up before he could get it out.
Matthew 6:3 says, “But when you give to the
needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,”
Father,
be with Boyd’s family at the funeral today.
Wrap your arms around them so they can feel your presence. Amen.
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