A young husband sat on a sofa on a hot humid day, drinking iced tea and
visiting with his father. As they talked about life, about marriage, about the
responsibilities of life and the obligations of adulthood, the father clinked
the ice cubes in his glass thoughtfully and turned a clear, sober glance upon
his son. "Don't forget your brothers," he advised, swirling the tea leaves to
the bottom of his glass.

"They'll be more important as you get older. No matter how much you love
your wife, no matter how much you love the children you might have, you are
still going to need brothers. Remember to go places with them now and then; do
things with them. Remember that "brothers" means ALL the men ... your guy
friends, your sons, and all your other male relatives, too. You'll need other
men. Men always do."

"What a funny piece of advice." the young man thought. "Haven't I just
gotten married? Haven't I just joined the couple world? I'm now a married man,
for goodness sake! A grownup! Surely my wife and the family we might start will
be all I need to make my life worthwhile."

But he listened to his father. He kept contact with his brothers and made
more men friends each year. As the years tumbled by, one after another, he
gradually came to understand that his Dad really knew what he was talking
about.
As time and nature work their changes and their mysteries upon a man,
brothers are the mainstays of his life. After more than 50 years of living in
this
world, here is what I've learned:

Time passes.
Life happens.
Distance separates.
Children grow up.
Jobs come and go.
Love waxes and wanes.
Women don't do what they're supposed to do.
Hearts break.
Parents die.
Colleagues forget favors.
Careers end.

But, brothers are there, no matter how much time and how many miles are
between you. A male friend is never farther away than needing him can reach.
When
you have to walk that lonesome valley and you have to walk it by yourself,
the men in your life will be on the valley's rim, cheering you on, praying for
you, pulling for you, intervening on your behalf, and waiting with open arms
at the valley's end. Sometimes, they will even break the rules and walk
beside you, or come in and carry you out. Guy friends, sons, grandsons,
sons-in-law, brothers, brothers-in-law, fathers, grandfathers, uncles, nephews,
cousins, and extended family, all bless our life!

The world wouldn't be the same without men, and neither would I. When we
began this adventure called manhood, we had no idea of the incredible joys or
sorrows that lie ahead. Nor did we know how much we would need each other.
Every day, we need each other still.



“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves: who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small doesn't serve the world.
There's nothing enlightened about shrinking
so that other people wont feel insecure around you.

We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
Its not just in some of us, it is in everyone." - Marianne Williamson



Yahoo! Groups: End_Verbal_Abuse Group Leader
_http://groups.yahoo.com/group/End_Verbal_Abuse_
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/End_Verbal_Abuse)


Yahoo! Groups: CoDependents Group Leader
_http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Codependents_
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Codependents)







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