Show me your fangs
    Tell me something that’ll save me
    I need a man who makes me alright
    Tell me something that’ll change me
    I’m gonna love you with my hands tied
    Show me your teeth

    — Lady Gaga, “Teeth”

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Well, not really a she-man, and not really in love, but I needed a catchy title…

Anyway, a random thought popped into my head today. I was thinking about a girl I liked in 5th grade named Erin. She was Cherokee Indian and already had a mustache you could weave a winter jacket out of. We played during recess and always shared a bag of Fritos Chili Cheese chips.

In retrospect, I probably just liked Erin because her facial hair made me think of boys. But I could really go for some chips right now. Mmmm…

Okay, not all of my love stories are epic, but that’s the story of when I fell in love with a she-man.

Or man-she. Whatever…


The text message caught me by surprise. I pulled out my phone to read:

    I just want you to know that you are an amazing man, and I deeply value you and your friendship. Thank you for all that you have done for me.

When I saw his words, I was overcome with emotion as I felt the tears rise to the surface. I tried to hold back and keep myself together as I sat in the restaurant.

My friend has been battling cancer for the second time in his life. I remember the phone call, just a little over 3 months ago, when he was feeling hopeless, faithless, and had decided he was going to die. He’d picked out a casket, made funeral arrangements, and admitted defeat.

But despite the understandable doom and gloom he was going through, he’s surviving. He isn’t dead. So what a shock it was to see him tell ME that I’m an amazing man, when I think he’s the amazing one. I can’t begin to imagine what he’s been through. All I’ve done is listen to him when he needed to talk. That’s not so incredible.

A lot of people in the world are dealing with their own personal hells. I have friends who are heartbroken, friends who are sick, friends who are unemployed, friends who are lonely… We survive because we have to, need to, or just reach a point where we don’t want to suffer anymore.

That’s the incredible thing about the human spirit. We can be reborn, renewed, relieved. We can start a new chapter. I’ve done it plenty of times myself.

I know someone, somewhere out there needs to hear this today. Find your warrior within and keep fighting.