James Taylor was on the money...

"Hey, ain't it good to know that you've got a friend?" - James Taylor

I was laying in bed last night thinking about life (surprise surprise) and I had a certain thought that caused a sudden little flood of peace and joy to wash over me. This thought isn't new for me, by all means, but last night, it just popped in my head at such a sweet moment. I'll explain...

You know those new hp pavilion laptop commercials where the featured celebrity explains their life by pulling things out of thin air? If not, click here to see what I'm talking about. I started invisioning what life would be like if I could tell stories this way... but not just any story. I imagined being face to face with an enemy - the enemy of lonliness, the enemy of lies we tell ourselves, the enemy of confusion and despair. I imagined it was a battle, but before we started fighting, we got to form our teams. I started forming my team by looking to all the different groups of friends I have and handpicking them "hp commercial style" and placing them all together in front of my enemy. I looked at my family first... then moved onto church, then onto school friends. I thought of high school buddies, Aggie choir friends... and I started to realize something. I have so many people who I know are in my camp. We all do. I am surrounded by the love of people who support me, rejoice with me, take delight in me and I in them.

I want people to remember this - we all go through times in our lives when things are looking grim, but at these times some of the best therapy you can have is to pull out old photo albums... place pictures all around your room of those people who love you. Lonliness can leave you feeling stranded on an island, but if you mentally populate that island with the friends and family that stand behind you through life, your deserted island will quickly turn into the luau of the century .

Thanks to all of the beautiful people that make me smile every day - God couldn't have blessed me with a better team than y'all. Oh- and know that I am on your team. I'm on the front lines baby.

"I needed the shelter of someone's arms and there you were. I needed someone to understand my ups and downs and there you were. With sweet love and devotion, deeply touching my emotion, I want to stop and thank you..." - James Taylor