Who would you take a bullet for?

I was talking with some of my housemates tonight, and I asked them who in their lives they would take a bullet for willingly.  I’d like to think that I’d take a bullet for anyone, and there are a lot of people that I would take a bullet for, hoping that if they were put in the same situation that they’d do the same for me, but several people in my life came to mind as people that I would, completely willingly, take a bullet for.

My mom and dad.  They’ve done more for me than I’ll ever be able to thank and repay them for.  They put up with a lot of shit from me while I was growing up and going through some weird phases, and they tolerated it, letting me be myself and go through it.  I have specific memories of both of my parents, which in my mind stand out as moments that show true parental love.  Like my dad when I was 3 or so years old.  He’d come home from work and take a shower, and then lay on the couch and read the newspaper.  I’d lay on his belly while he read, and he’d play games with me.  “Andrew, find me a ‘p’,” he’d say, and I’d scour the page until I found a ‘p’.  “Find me an ‘f’” and I’d scour the page until I found a word with an ‘f’.  After I’d learned the whole alphabet, he taught me how to put the letters into words.  “Okay, find a ‘the’,” and I’d look through the sentences until I found one.  “Find a ‘bus’”.  Then the words got harder.  “Find a fence.”  Then he taught me to put the words into sentences.  Then I started reading my own books, and by 1st grade, I had a 6th grade reading level.  I devoured everything I could get my hands on… novels, readers, pamphlets, shampoo bottles… it didn’t matter.  I really believe that I owe all of this to my dad, and I wouldn’t be where I am without him.

My memories of my mom are a little different.  I used to be sick a lot as a kid, and my mom took care of me, although I never really realized what she put herself through to do that.  The most beautiful thing about the situation is that she didn’t even think twice about the sacrifice.  That’s the love of a parent for a child.  I have two specific memories of my mom doing this.  One time, I was really sick.  I don’t know what exactly I had, but I was running a really high fever, freezing and sweating and burning up at the same time.  I was barely conscious, partly from whatever I was sick with, partly from the fever, and partly from the medicine, but what I remember is my mom staying up with me, and putting washcloths soaked in ice water across my forehead and chest, trying to get the fever down.  When I was a Senior in High School, I was hospitalized, and my mom sat up with me then.  I was like, “Okay, mom, I’m 18 years old, you can really go.  I’ll just hang out and watch TV and get some reading done, you don’t really have to stay.”  But she did. “Yeah, I know… I’ll stay a little bit longer though,” she said.  She knew I was okay by myself, but she wanted to stay.  She knew I’d be alright, but I’m sure she probably didn’t sleep well that night.  That’s fuckin’ love.

My brother.  My brother was my first best friend, the first person who I ever got into deliberate trouble with, the first person who I ever got into deliberate fights with, the first person I went exploring with, and my constant companion for a huge part of my life.  Any of the other people in my life that I consider brothers, I view through my relationship with Tay.  I think that in a lot of ways, he’s the most caring, loving, and gracious person that I know, and it’s unfortunate that these traits are overshadowed by some of his others.  He’s always been there to back me up, regardless of what I was doing, and I’m pretty sure he always will be.

My sister.  My sister and I used to fight all the time, because we didn’t understand each other.  I thought she was just a stupid, spoiled bitch who made far too many wrong decisions and I thought that by criticizing her, I’d get her to stop and change.  That didn’t work… it just made me an asshole.  I was far too willing to rip her apart and criticize her for what I thought were her bad qualities, while not being there to support her for her good ones.  The moment I realized that was really a turning point in my life, and I think that now we really do understand each other, and because of that, we get along really, really well.  I see a lot of myself reflected in her, and vice-versa… maybe I did have at least some positive influence on her growing up ;)


Jesse.  Jesse and I have been best friends since 4th grade.  He’s one of only 2 people outside of my immediate family that I consider to be a brother, and one of 2 that I know that we have fun together, regardless of what we’re doing.  Jesse and I could be sitting in an empty basement with nothing on the walls or floors, and after a while of just sitting there in silence, one of us would say, “So… you wanna fight or something?”  And then we’d wrestle or beat each other up, just for the hell of it, and it’d be fun.  Jesse’s always told me things as they were, never putting up with my shit and keeping my feet on the ground.  That’s one of the many things that sets him apart from everyone else in my life.  I’ve known him for 12 years, and some of the greatest times of my life so far have been with him.  In 12 years, we’ve never faltered in our loyalty to each other, and I’d take a fuckin’ bullet for him in a heartbeat.

Joe.  Joe is the other person in my life that I consider to be a brother, even though we’re not related.  Joe is also the other person I know who we have a blast regardless of what we’re doing or if we’re doing nothing at all.  If Joe and I were in an empty basement, we’d sit there for a while and then try to name everyone we’ve ever been attracted to for as far back as we can remember.  Then we’d quote some random videos or cartoons or a Seinfeld episode.  Joe is a fuckin’ great guy, and he and I have a really good understanding of each other, in my opinion, which is what really drives our friendship.  He and I work well together, because we balance each other out.  I think that just one of us is too much, but when we’re together, we even out and make a pretty dynamic pair.  Neither of us feels like we have to be in control of the spotlight, and we each play to the other’s strengths.  I feel like I’m close to a lot of people in the house, but Joe and I have become like brothers over the past 5 months.

There are a few other people in my life that I would gladly take a bullet for… Bill, Nikki and Jen all come to mind, because they’ve helped me through a hell of a lot, especially over the past year… but more importantly than that, they’ve been there for me since I’ve known them, and I couldn’t ask for more.

I’m sure there’s at least someone that I’m leaving out, so if it’s you, don’t be offended.  I’m pretty sure that the people in my life who mean a lot to me know it.  I try to let them know how much I appreciate them as much as I can.