Leadership Thought: Did You Ever Have a Friend Who Wrote a Poem About You?

Dear Friends,

Did you ever have someone write a poem about you?

Yesterday as I was doing some filing, I came across a file folder that read "Brennan Tom and Jean Poem."

I didn't remember filing it, and I am not sure I ever remember reading it, but I must have as it had been stored and hidden away in one of my file cabinets. I don't have any idea of its background or the motivation behind its creation.

My friend Dan Brennan. who is an elder in our church and who wrote it,  will never be confused for being a poet laureate.

He writes:

"Tom and Jean, lovers true. in their apartment warm and cozy, Tom sips mango juice from Trader Joe's, while Jean works on a puzzle, oh, so cozy.

Their love, a beacon shining bright, guiding them through life's storms. They encourage each other, day and night, and together, their love transforms. 

They laugh, they play, they share their days. In their home, a haven of peace, their love, a never- ending phase, a bond that will never cease. 

With each other, they feel complete. Their love, a beautiful thing. Tom and Jean, forever sweet, together, their hearts will sing."

Dan is a brilliant computer engineer, but his poetry-well I'll leave it up to you to decide.

In any event Dan is a special friend, and he who has a special friend is a lucky person.

I first knew we would be good  friends when I told him how much I love Trader Joe's mango juice.

With a twinkle in his eye, he led me over to a closet outside his kitchen and opened the door. Inside the closet I counted over 50 half gallons of Trader Joe's mango juice. Enough said!

That sealed the deal; we would now become ‘mango’ friends for life, and we sealed our friendship that day with a drink of, you guessed it, Trader Joe's mango juice. 

And then two years ago at an elders meeting, Dan presented me with the first book I had ever written. It was a real surprise, for I didn't know I had even written a book.

Dan has secretly edited every Leadership Thought I had written over the course of a year and then organized them into a book he had published titled: The Home Run: Leadership Lessons from the Coach.

I weighed it this morning and it 'weighed in' at a hefty 7 pounds. No wonder, for between the covers there were over 600 pages of Leadership Thoughts. 

Just lifting the book is a weightlifter's dream; I tell people “If you don't read it, just use it as exercise equipment, and you will immediately begin to see those  biceps bulging.

No one was more surprised than I was with the book presentation that Dan made that night, and I will forever be grateful for his labor of love and the friendship that fashioned his gift.

Friendship is a gift, and those who are lucky enough to receive it, possess a gift that is greater than any riches one could ever amass.

The best friendships in life are always those that are the  result of unselfish giving. 

It has been said that "The true test of a relationship is not only how loyal we are when friends fail, but how thrilled we are when they succeed."

Over the years I have been blessed with the gift of many friends, but I recognize there is a price to pay for maintaining  those friendships. Like gardening we have to work on cultivating those friendships. If we don't they will cease to exist.

One of my greatest joys in life is staying in touch with old friends. Last year I received an e-mail from a person I hadn't seen for 65 years. 

I spoke at a high school youth retreat in the 60's that he had attended, and he wrote to tell me how he still remembers that day and the impact that retreat had on his life.

Today he receives my Leadership Thoughts, and we correspond regularly, and I'm looking forward to meeting with him personally this summer as he lives only a short way from our cottage on Lake Ontario.

Playwright George Bernard Shaw once wrote a note to his friend, Archibald Henderson, which said, "I have neglected you shockingly of late. This is because I have had to neglect everything that could be neglected without immediate ruin, and partly because you have passed into the circle of intimate friends whose feelings one never dreams of considering."

John Maxwell writes, "Shaw must have realized that his relationship with his friend was in desperate need of attention, and he desired to save it, and then John asks, "What price can you put on a great friendship?" John Maxwell, Winning with People, P. 81.

Dan Brennan is a friend and a good one. That is why yesterday, when he was on my mind, I took a moment to shoot him an e-mail to tell him how grateful I was for his friendship. And a few minutes later, I received his thankful response.

Is there a garden of friendship that needs to be re cultivated in your life? If so, why not do a little friendship weeding?

Friendships may be made in heaven, but their maintenance must be done on earth.

So, pick up the phone, or the pen, or stop by and make that visit. I promise that you will make two people very happy, and one of those two will be you.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

P.S. "It is best to be with those in time we hope to be with in eternity." Thomas Fuller