I got a text last night....and it was suggested that a dear old friend who I had just recently reconnected with might be very sick. Those that know me know that I am a demon with the computer and I didn't stop until I finally got hold of someone that could tell me the truth. The truth hurt. He is dying.
Haven't seen this friend face to face in many years, but we have been staying in touch through Facebook for the past 6 months or so. I didn't realize until last night that I hadn't heard from him since February....that hurt my heart. I should have known something was up...but I have been "too busy".
We were both born and raised in Lillington, NC...Randy, my old friend, has been close by to me in Wilmington, NC for quite a while yet neither one of us had taken the time to physically see each other. We took it for granted that friends will always be friends...and this is true!
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As I headed out to visit my old friend, who I sadly found out is in Hospice, memories kept flashing through my mind of all the good times. Times I had completely forgotten about. He was my boyfriend at about 7. We went to the same church and the same school. I could see our first "date" (at 7, I guess it was a play date) when my mother let me go to his Mama Goldie's across the river and spend the day. Randy took me way down the dirt road behind her house and showed me their pond. There was a little wooden boat on the shore and he coaxed me in. We had NO business at that age out on a boat in the middle of the woods...no life preservers...nobody knew where we were. I can still hear the laughter as he rowed us all around that pond several times and impressed me with his wildlife talents. When we came back to shore he pulled the little boat up beside an old cypress with huge roots standing out of the water. As I stepped on one of the roots about 6 snake heads popped out! He saved me by grabbin' my arm and we ran so fast back to Mama Goldie's, with me screaming all the way, that there had to be a dust cloud kicked up! We laughed about that afternoon every time we got a chance to see each other throughout the years.
Randy's mother and grandmother raised him together without a father figure. They spoiled him rotten! He had such a HUGE personality and in high school some of us just loved to hang out at their place. Randy's grandfather had the old airport across the river and Randy had inherited a bachelor pad in the old hangar building. Lord, if those walls could talk! He finally "got sent" to Military School and I'll never forget one of his first furlough's home. He had a brand new corvette, top flopped...and a smile that was at least a mile wide. He picked me up and said "let's ride"! Well, yeah! Behind the seats was a small cooler full of cans and I thought "Oh Lord, we're gonna get in trouble"....but was looking forward to a forbidden cold one. Anybody that knows Randy will remember him as all arms & legs, skinny as a rail. Come to find out he had the cooler full of Wate On, at that time a popular drink to build you up and fill you out. We rode all day with the music wide open and I know he drank at least 8 cans of that nasty stuff. We laughed and paraded through Lillington and always reminisced that he didn't gain an ounce!
Then there was the night he died...yes, died! In Lillington the thing for some of the teenagers to do was to "ride across the river", circling the grills, gathering to talk....or fight...and drink. On a dare from some of the guys, Randy started chugging liquor like there was no tomorrow...and there almost wasn't! He finally passed out and they told us he was dead. He was rushed off to the hospital in Erwin.Thank goodness he was revived and lived to see another day. It was touch and go...but he survived..and so did the story.
It's amazing how so many memories can flood your mind on a 45 minute drive...there were many more. Randy lived a big life and lived life BIG. He liked fancy cars, beautiful women, titty bars and beautiful clothes. He was always the best dressed man in the room.
When I finally pulled up at the Hospice facility off of #17 I had to sit in the car for a while and pull myself together...I didn't know what to expect...I didn't know what I was going to say...and the tears started flowing. Finally straightened up and went inside. The nice lady led me to his room. My heart broke. The friend I knew who was always so full of life was just a shell. They told me he hadn't spoken since last week. They left me alone with him. The words came naturally...."I love you, Big Guy". I talked non-stop for over an hour. Did he hear me? Did he know who I was? You're dern tootie, he did...in my mind, any way,
Corbett Wrandall Godwin, III...You have always, and will always, be my friend! Thanks for the good times...and we'll meet again, some day. I love ya, Buddy!
The point of this whole blog is...Don't be afraid to tell your friends you love 'em. Don't be like me and not pick up the phone and make plans to see one another. Don't let the years pass you by. We're not guaranteed tomorrow!
Sad and feeling guilty about not keeping up with a good friend, I made a couple of stops on the way home...Comfort food...oh, yes! I'll see my buddy again tomorrow, but tonight I shall be comforted! North Carolina's own Smithfield BBQ and Holden Farms fresh produce!
Be Young...Be Foolish..and Be Happy, My Friends! Life's Too Short! .... And Call An Old Friend!
To end this thing....Y'all know what's always on my mind...Don't fret the small stuff...Let's just DANCE!
THANKS FOR DROPPIN' IN! WHILE YOU'RE HERE, WON'T YOU LEAVE A COMMENT?
