Some years ago when some small children told me about the cartoon show Sponge Bob, Square Pants, I watched it and found it silly. Now some years later I find myself watching it, liking it and (God forbid!) sometimes watching it by myself. The show has not changed much … what has changed is me. Besides the fact that I can now receive Nickelodeon on my TV, part of what has changed is that God has granted me some of my wish to be like a three year old. To a three year old the world is still full of mystery and awe and doing something silly can still be fun. The older children, especially in their teens, are taught that being silly or doing nothing is not so good. Being scheduled, as even now three year olds are, to do something with your time, even if it is watching TV, is better than just being silly and doing nothing as the characters in this TV show often do. There is always some story or point to each show but that is not what makes it so attractive to young children and not so liked by many parents. The simple, ridiculous, slapstick humor makes young children like it and adults dislike it. Maybe it is this generation’s “Three Stooges” show.

Today I received word that a long-time friend, close to my age, has died. What I remember best about my friend is his sense of humor. He has been sick for a long time and a few days ago a mutual friend said he was back in his apartment under hospice care. I called him up to see if I could visit him. He answered the phone and his voice was very weak. He was now breathing straight oxygen but still having a hard time breathing. Another friend had visited him earlier in the week and had told me that if I went to visit him to bring him some Butter Pecan custard from Leon’s Custard stand on the South side. I asked him if that would be okay. He asked me if I would be coming by myself and I said I probably would. He asked me to bring my wife along, and said: “you know you can be pretty boring.” So yesterday, my wife’s day off of work, we called him to see if it was a good time to come over. A woman answered this time, and after some talk with her and my friend, the Hospice nurse came on the phone and said my friend was not doing so well and it would not be a good time to come over. I sensed that he was nearing the end and was not surprised to get a call today saying he had died this afternoon. He will be noted for many things, like being a good father and grandfather, but many will remember him for his sense of humor that always present, even in his dying days.

My friend now rests in the garden of God, which I hear is even better than the garden of Eden, and just as full of smiles as Sponge Bob, Square Pants.

(Note: Sponge Bob is no relation to Uncle Bob or Papa Bob)

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