I Called Mama - Tim McGraw

In this story, I take a break from my typical recipe-based posts and introduce the concept of Musical Nutrition. This post is inspired by the song, "I Called Mama" by Tim McGraw.

Music therapy has been proven beneficial for our mental health. Music aids in soothing depression, trauma, and even serious forms of mental illness. It acts as a medium for processing emotions and grief while acting as a calming agent for anxiety and supporting overall well-being.

Music therapy allows persons experiencing grief or other mental health problems to explore personal feelings, make positive changes in mood and emotional states, have a sense of control over life through successful experiences, practice problem solving, and resolve conflicts leading to stronger family and peer relationships.

Music therapy also provides avenues for communication that can be helpful to those who find it difficult to express themselves in words.

“People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.” - unknown

Although I hadn’t seen my childhood friend, Dan, since high school, I took pleasure in watching his life play out on Facebook. I watched Dan embrace his step children as his own and made certain they called him 'Dad' and 'Grandpa'. I also watched the devotion he had for his wife, Debbie.

One day, I read a post from his wife, Debbie, whom I had never met. She shared with all of us about how cancer had struck Dan and how she needed prayers. I immediately called my mama whom, if you’ve heard me talk about her or if you knew her, you knew she was the warrior you would want to pray for you. My mother’s faith in God was very powerful so it was common for me to share this news with her. My mother and Dan had cancer in common as she too had been recently diagnosed with it. As I watched cancer take over Dan’s body, I witnessed such a courageous man fight like Hell so that he could care for his family.

“Mom, why do the best people die so soon?”

“When you’re in a garden, which flowers do you pick first?”

“The most beautiful ones.” - unknown

I learned that Dan and I shared a love for riding motorcycles and that the Strugis bike rally was on his bucket list. So, my husband and I invited Dan and his wife Debbie for a trip to South Dakota. I feel so blessed to have reconnected with Dan and shared a special bond with his wife, Debbie.  I am grateful to have been able to share Dan’s last few months with him as we rode motorcycles and four-wheelers and spent many fun nights singing around the campfire.

I also witnessed Dan’s wife sacrifice everything for her husband. Debbie risked her own life riding on the back of Dan’s motorcycle knowing very well the heavy drugs Dan was taking and the excruciating pain he was feeling. As the days flew by on our wonderful trip, I kept receiving calls from my praying mother wondering how Dan was doing. I called my mom to tell her how he was barely hanging on and thanked her for her prayers of strength for him to be able to fulfill his last wishes. It was a special trip, and I knew the day we put Dan on the plane and said our goodbyes would be the last time I would see him. A month later, Debbie called to tell us of Dan’s passing, and I called my mama.

The day Debbie laid Dan to rest, I had spent the day with my mother. In fact, my mother and I shared a special day together, and I remember how she teared up knowing Dan had passed. Oddly, by the end of that day, my mother had also passed from a sudden stroke. I sent Debbie a quick text, and although she could barely breathe from her own loss, she immediately sent me a loving text of how she felt we met for a reason. Debbie shared how comforting it was knowing that Dan would take my mom’s hand and fly up to the pearly gates together.

You see, my reconnection with Dan happened for a reason. Dan and Debbie arrived into my life exactly at the right time and place to transport my mother to heaven. So, I believe we meet people for a reason - even if they are only here for a season.

"People touch our lives if only for a moment, And yet we're not the same from that moment on, The time is not important, The moment is forever." - Fern Bork