Jackass

I know two jackasses. Now I know the world has many many more, but I want to draw and quarter two.

Ricky was an amazing jackass. I call him jackass lovingly because he didn't take anything or anyone too seriously. He was self centered and smart.  Mikey was in his circle of just a few that he truly cared about. Their friendship was almost clandestine. Secret. On a level just plain old friends never really get to. They were brothers.
Ricky would answer my husband's 2am phone call and listen to him drivel on, drunk. And Mikey would answer Ricky's 2am phone call.  Ricky and Mikey would stay on the porch, bragging and chortling until all hours of the night. Mikey would listen and Ricky would listen; they'd advise each other, console one another, and forge their own brotherhood. I am proud of the men they were growing into: generous, loving, and genuine. It was an intimate friendship, theirs.
Ricky was no saint. He was a Redneck Angel though. (Kinda reminds me of those Dale Earnhardt decals, where the halo is tipped ever so slightly) When my mother passed away, Mikey asked Ricky to be there for me because he couldn't. There were three people, besides family, at my mother's funeral. Ricky was one of them. There were 200 hundred people at his funeral. I cherish the memory of that  moment, Ricky and I.
And now, he is a Redneck Angel. It seems so surreal that Ricky is gone. The world has lost a true Jackass. Goofy, loving, strong. I watched his father at the funeral. I don't know if Ricky could've ever been Richard. Ricky didn't care anything about asserting his power, about demanding respect. Either you did or you didn't. He was true to himself and to the ones he loved. And after years of struggle, Ricky was finally getting comfortable in his own skin. My husband and his family were in that circle that Ricky had his arms around. Wow. We were so privileged to be loved by Ricky.
Ricky was a testament to integrity. Love genuinely. What you see is what you get. Don't demand respect, earn it.
If I loved that Jackass this much, I can only imagine the emptiness my husband feels. I hope Mikey parlays Ricky's death into a purpose. Purposefully loving those that love him. Protecting and enjoying parenting. Earning respect by generosity.

When we refer to the other jackass I know, we often sneer when we say it. He is a jackass of the lowest kind. Condescending and mean, a sniveling of a man.

Nah, I 'd rather spend the energy on Ricky.

Ricky I know you're with Jesus. He prepares the way for all us sinners to live in the Kingdom of Glory. Ricky's there. Jumping off the top of a houseboat and being a jackass. And God is smiling, shaking His head.