Pierce
First, before I say this, let me say I am grateful to all of my friends that helped and continue to help me through the rough phase. Those of you who have been there have meant so much to me. I appreciate your texts, phone calls, and company more than I will ever be able to adequately put into words.
Pierce, though, well, he's easy to put into words.
I graduated high school in 1999. I left my first college in the winter of 2001. It just wasn't the right fit for me. I was unhappy. My family left Texas and I felt alone. I moved to Nebraska and worked, saying that eventually, I would make it back to school. When the opportunity presented itself, I finally made it back in the fall of 2004 when my younger brother graduated from high school. I was a non-trad, but still a freshman. Most of the people I would associate with were five years my junior. The people my same age, they had graduated and were on their way to pursuing their career of choice.
I say that in preface to acknowledge the fact that my friendbase, typically these days, is younger than I am by many years. Doing work at the theater lately has given me some older friends, but that is a different story for a different time. My friends from college are closer to my brother's age than mine. That has made me see that age, really, is just a number. It makes me feel younger than I am and that I still have plenty of time to accomplish things I feel that I deserve.
When I first met Pierce at my job, I didn't think much of him. He was an arrogant kid who had a bit too much swagger. He dressed in Duke blue and listened to rap acts that I had never heard of. His taste in movies lacked a certain intellect and he made fun of people that were different than he was, a quality I questioned since we work with the developmentally disabled. We didn't talk too much right away. I had the sense that he was judging me in the way that I was judging him. There is a cliche I won't say. You know what it is. It's true.
When we finally opened up to each other, I found him to be a great kid. I mean that, too. Kid. He was 20. He also dropped out of college. He didn't really know what he wanted to do, but one thing was clear: he was very good at this job. We became friends pretty quickly after that. I kind of took to him like another younger sibling. I would make jokes at his expense. Not in a mean way, but in a, "Hey. I am going to teach you something about life," kind of way. We talked about movies. I loathed many he mentioned. He said he hated many of mine, however, had never seen them. We began a borrowing service. I would loan him several of my movies at a time as a means of culturing him. We'd find the good ones and see what stuck. This worked really well. He began to see why films like MEMENTO are good and why TRANSFORMERS is not. In turn, he opened me up to more rap. It's silly, but I really am thankful for him making me like Lil Wayne. Hahaha. I see that in print and I laugh.
When SHE and I had a huge fight months prior to the divorce, he didn't want to leave my side. He told me that her anger would fade and that things would be okay. He said it in a way that I believed. We both did. I knew at that moment that our bond was something more than a co-worker one.
When SHE left me, he was there. He threw me on his back and kept me going. He made me smile when I couldn't help but cry. For awhile there, he really took it easy on me. I could pretty much recommend anything and he came back liking it. He became my movie buddy. He became my confidante. We talked about anything and everything. Whenever I was low, he was there to boost my spirits. When I would suffer from an anxiety attack, he would be on my list of people I could call to calm me down.
Pierce has kind of become that long-lasting friend that I feel such a brotherhood with. Again, I have other friends that I feel that way with and you guys are probably reading this wondering, "What about me?" Living in the same city as Pierce made it so much easier for him to PHYSICALLY be there as well as mentally and emotionally. He was able to fit in with my other friends and, in fact, become friends with them. He opened his mind to acceptance and tolerance of others, a change that I take great pride in helping bring about. Plus, his taste in movies has gotten much better. When THE KING'S SPEECH came to town, I wanted to see it and didn't feel like going alone. He agreed. When we got there and it was filled with senior citizens, he turned to me and asked, "This probably isn't going to be like most movies I see in theaters." When it was over, he said, "They should just give it the Oscar now. So good. Wow."
Since my work schedule has changed, I don't get to see him as often and that is hard to accept. The first opportunity I get, I am taking my old schedule back, for many reasons. A big one, though, being that I will get to see and work with one of my best friends again.
You'll never read this, Pierce, but I thank you for your friendship. I will slip it into a conversation occasionally, but I will never be able to get out the right words to tell you just how much you have come to mean to me. You are a wonderful guy and I really, truly appreciate you.
