I got a note from the wife of a college roommate and friend the other day. It was that note. My friend passed away a few months ago. I guess I wasn’t much of a friend that I was just hearing about it.
My friend had been in decline for the last several years. He was a giant of a man in every respect, but Parkinson’s had the last word.
He had a big vision of putting massive windmills in the sea off the Aleutian Islands. I guess it blows all the time and like crazy up there and there are transmission lines nearby to ship the power south.
What a great idea . . . and not something my friend would be able to pull together for all sorts of reasons.
So, I ducked his calls. I didn’t want to encourage him.
Read that again. I didn’t want to encourage my friend to dream.
Yesterday, I found an unplayed voicemail from him on my phone. It is literally a voice from beyond the grave. I’m so ashamed to say I only just now listened to it (and almost didn’t).
He just wanted to say hello.
I believe in the idea of “no matter what’s.” One of them is “Proceed with love, no matter what.”
This I did not do.
This promise I made to myself welcomes me back. Begin again.
And to it I add another, “Return the call, no matter what.”