Wow. Just reconected with an old friend of mine- A story of two paths

So this hit me pretty hard. I was just on facebook and a dude who I haven't talked in like over 3 years hit me up and I had actually just been ignoring his messages and calls for the longest time, but I figured there was no harm in just sayin hi to him. I'm in New York, he's in cali, so it would just be a conversation.

Basically, back in the day me and this dude rolled together all the time. We have very similar medical issues and personalities. But what follows is a story of two different paths. Mine and his. Jesus, man.. this is really tough for me but I just gotta write about this or else it's gonna bounce around in my head. It's just like, fuck, the world is a trippy ass place and shit just doesn't make sense sometimes, but it is what it is.

I was like, hey man what's up and he goes, "not much man, how are you" I'm like, "Good dude, in ny" blah blah blah and then I'm like, "What have you been up to?" and he goes, "not much man, been livin in a homeless shelter for the past 3 months, bout to get out and try to get shit on track" and I was like, "Wow man, how'd that happen" and he's like, "Well I was in a mental institution for bout a month and then I ran away".

Mind you, this dude has said this COUNTLESS times. I mean, I cut him off completely becuase he fucking wouldn't listen to anything I told him, he wouldn't follow me on my path, he wanted to do his own thing. I tried to put him on my back but he kept jumping off. He just wouldn't fucking listen. I had his back, I swear to fucking god I did but at a certain point, I had to put myself first. I didn't bail on him, even if it seems like it. I would never bail on someone that was willing to work with me, but he just wasn't. I've had too many people put me on their back and show me a path for me not to be willing to do that for others. But there's only so much you can do.

And the thing is that the only reason we have these two different paths is becuase I happened to meet some dude and listen to him at the right time and start meditating and allowed myself to fail. That's it. I allowed myself to fail and I allowed myself to listen to the right people. It was total luck that i met that dude, but it's always the same with me, I have a real good knack for listening to the right people. I don't know what it is but I've never faltered in this sense. I have a few mentors in my life and they all have come to me sorta just by chance but they have always come through and it's like I don't know how it happens like this. I don't know why or how I end up listening to the right people at the right times.

Towards the end of highschool, I would be like, "Yo man, come up to the san fran zen center and meditate with me.. they have a drug program there and it's totally chill, they don't pressure you or push you around or anything.. like dude they're MONKS haha" and he would always tell me, "Yeah man, I'll come just hit me up" and I'd hit him up and he just wouldn't go.

Also- I just happened to be born with a certain type of personality and a certain set of skills as an athlete that allowed me to be recruited to play sports at one of the best universities in the country, so I was able to get out of my hometown. Now, I'm not saying this is luck but I mean, it could have just as easily been him.

So now this dude is on a host of different medications, struggling with drug/alcohol abuse (haha not like he drinks when he goes out.. but like serious, drinking alone type shit) and living in a homeless shelter

And now I'm at literally the best fucking point of my entire life, getting interviews for jobs I want, living with a couple of incredible people who are fucking awesome, don't do any of that shit (except drink normally) and are also on amazing paths of their own, going out every night and hitting on girls without drinking

I know I put some sensitive information in here and I may go in and change it up/delete this later but holy shit. Like I made it out of a place that I shouldn't have made it out of, simply by listening to the right person. And the thing was that I was at a place in my life that I would have listented to anyone, this guy just happened to come along and offer help and I took him up on that and worked my ass off once I got it. I did everything this guy said, sometimes I would fail, sometimes I would fuck up, but I was always back in the ring, getting it done. I love this man and he's one of my best friends now and we laugh about where I was at. I mean, I don't know if I would even be alive today it wasn't for this guy. He taught me loyalty and he taught me compassion by showing me loyalty and by showing me compassion.

Now I'm not saying I'm perfect- FAR FAR FAR from it... but you gotta recognize what it feels like to be in my position and to hear about one of my old buddies, with similar shit as me, literally homeless, taking meds and running away from a psychiatric ward. And here I am, entirely healthy, no meds, no drugs, a fairly healthy bank account... fuck man. It's shit like this that just makes you feel an absolutely INTENSE amount of gratitude. Just a gratitude for life and a gratitude to myself for fighting tooth and nail to survive and to evolve.

And you know what it comes down to? It's not fucking luck. I may have made mistakes in my life, I may have gone down the wrong path countless times and hurt countless people but the fact is that I have a fucking WILL to live. I have a WILL to get better, a WILL to be the person I want to be. And each time I go down the wrong path, I always figure out a way to make it right and get in gear. I don't take the straightest path, I don't walk the tightrope and make it to the other side without a scratch, but I fucking get there one way or the other.

Anyway- he's there and I'm here and while it hit me hard and I would never bail on a dude... I have moved on and there is no way in hell I'm looking back. He'll figure his shit out one way or the other and if he doesn't... well... then he'll come to understand life the way he wants to.