Phil – Part III

I mentioned that Phil was an exquisite underachiever, that’s not quite true. A graduate of Brandeis, an accomplished pianist, a possessor of no mean intellect, and yet working the night shift in a grocery store while giving piano lessons in the daytime. However, Phil did have a gift, a gift that I needed – he was an encourager – and in that department he was a success.

He wasn’t one of those “rah-rah everything’s going to be all right” encouragers. He wasn’t like the Brit on the BBC who says, “Have a cup of dear old chap and everything will be right as rain.” No, Phil was a thoughtful encourager, he’d size a person up, listen to the person, ask questions, and then he’d prod with a question like, “Have you ever thought about doing _________?”

When I arrived at Red’s Market I was in survival mode – I was just trying to make it week to week financially and emotionally. Finding a job had been a trial – I had worked construction before but there was no construction in Orlando, I tried sales and that was ugly, just plain ugly. Since I had a grocery background I tried Red’s Market – and God had Phil waiting there for me.

I was 27 years old at the time and (partly) as a result of my expulsion from seminary as a teenager (I wrote about that back in February or March) I never graduated from high school or got my GED. I guess I had written academics off, I hadn’t written learning off for I was always learning, but formal education wasn’t something I thought about – I didn’t have time, I was too busy messing my life up. Plus what folks call “self-image” was about as deep in the septic tank as you can get – though I don’t really think much of self-image but I do think of who we are in Christ, that’s really the only image that matters.

Phil and I would spend many nights talking about history and philosophy, religion and politics, and the more questions he asked and the more answers I gave the more he started talking to me about getting my GED. He told me that I should be teaching in a university – I don’t share this to pat myself on the back, I share it to demonstrate what a blessing Phil was to me. Phil also encouraged me in terms of “self-image”, he got me to thinking that maybe there was hope and that maybe I wasn’t destined to tread water in a cesspool.

I took him seriously and got my GED while I was at Red’s Market – I wouldn’t have done it were it not for Phil. So you can see now why Phil played such a significant role in my life. We worked together for less than a year – but Phil’s friendship and encouragement are still bearing fruit in my life.

I still pray for Phil and his son Jake. I hope Phil has found family and friends and peace – and most of all Jesus. I still love that guy.