good gRief?

Grieving is generally done in 5 stages:

  denial, anger, bargaining,

depression....and finally acceptance.

i am certain that i am stuck in four of the five stages....

i didn't think i was such a life pansy....i seem to suck at overcoming some stuff. 
or maybe i am just addicted to being sad about stuff;

loss, abandonment, icky ouchies that happen

when you LIVE life and people you LOVE dont. 

(bitter edge of anger here)

i am actually questioning stage 5.  really?

anyhow....today i had a little tearful smile with a friend.  my friend lost a good friend about a week ago.  this good friend was a good guy living with some life baggage -- as all human beings tend to do. 

this good guy had some struggles, he died after consuming one particular struggle.  anyhow, left behind people who loved him, who appreciated him, who saw all the good stuff in this guy.

but the SMILE in the story is that this good guy did something really nice for someone about a month ago. 


it goes like this:

a young couple came into the station

 where this good guy worked. 

they had just had a baby

and were headed home from the hospital. 

home was about an hour away. 

they had to be in a

special hospital

kind of far

from "home".

  the young father needed to fill up with gas. 

 his credit card didn't work. 

something about his own life struggles. 

he was in a sad sorrow,

his young baby

and baby's mother in the car waiting. 

so this good guy

spent his own money

 to fill up this young couples car.

  he also gifted them some drinks

 and munchies for the road trip home.

the young man

overwhelmed

with the generosity

of our good guy

said "i will be back to pay you".

  the good guy said

"no worries,

enjoy your new baby,

it's my treat"

here we are

-- a month later,

 a week since 

good guys sad passing

from this world

the young man comes back

into the station,

an hour from home

asking when good guy will be at work

"will you give him this envelope?"

my good friend of the good guy

with tears in his eyes

told the young man

about his friends passing.

the young man broke

tears shed,

a hug between two strangers

both touched by the loss

which

left an emptyness

in their embrace.

but....

the envelope

inside was a bill - to pay back the debt

and a baby birth announcement

the impact of good guys kindness

will live on in the young mans son

the baby boy

middle name --

"good guy"

for in this strangers kindness

to these two young parents

trying to get home

left a legecy

baby boy "good guy" last name

i suppose the moral of this for me

is that

when you remember

the print of a person

in your life ---

at times

there 

can be

found 

a lot of good

among the gRief.