Now Ed and I have been married 44 years and our love continues to deepen but, having said that, I've got this thing for Daniel. Before you begin to suspect me of infidelity, let me explain.
Daniel is three years of age and he tells me, next he'll be four. Each Sunday when we meet we renew our commitment to each other: "Are you my boy?" I ask him. "Yes, I'm your boy," he tells me and then questions me. "Are you MY boy?" After I've reassured him that things are still the same between us, we continue the conversation. Things were a bit different today, however.
"Are you my boy?" I ask. "We're best friends," he responds. Thrilled at the thought I'd been moved up a notch, I elaborate on the church picnic going on around us. "Today you've got lots of friends here," to which Daniel replied: "Yes, and when they're all gone then we'll be best friends again."
As we near Thanksgiving Day there are so many things for which to give thanks. While it's almost routine to enumerate them - friends, family, food, freedom - today I added faithfulness.
We live in a world where too often self-interest takes precedence over commitment to those we love and immediate gratification is deemed superior to doing things in the right order. Nothing enhances the blessings of friends, family, food and freedom like the security of faithfulness.
Thanksgiving Sunday, we share a special meal with friends and it is at these times I give additional thanks for our farmers. In good times and in bad times they stand out to me as symbols of "best friends". Faithful in plowing the ground, planting the seed and reaping the harvest, only those I love and the One I worship rank higher.
Best friends, always.
