There is a saying, "I can count the number of friends in one hand." Well, too many quite honestly counting the number of friends in one hand, would really be a lot of friends; actually. And, yes I write about personal and leadership development; but I must say, True, True, True friends are truly hard to come by. And, yes I do have friends that I can not only count in one hand but in both of my hands and they are; good, good, real good friends; but, there is however; one special friend that truly stands out above all others. I will reserve the name of this unique individual for the moment as first; I would like to discuss the variables of what made this particular individual so special.
You see, from my perspective being a special individual requires the elements of core values that make-up the character of a person to be a good decent human being. A Special friend is one who stands firm with you for the right cause because that friend is bright enough to know the distinction between what is right for a cause versus turn your head the other way for self serving purposes. This Special friend being discussed thoroughly understood a core value of extreme importance to me and that is "Integrity". This special friend was bursting with integrity, and as my friend, I knew that should an issue ever arise that impacted me perhaps in a negative manner; I know that this special friend of mine; would much rather inquire about the surrounding situation than to question my honor and there are few I can honestly say that about.
A friend is a teacher, but to teach one has to have a knowledge base that is equipped with a packed history of experiences. You see this special friend had the disposition of being one of the most street smart individuals I ever met and he had a degree from one of the best University in America; the University California Berkeley. And, so therefore, quite honestly, this is where the story of this great friend begins, coming from Bakersfield California, and being a great athlete as a Young man to becoming a Navy Seal during the Korean War; rare for an African American at that time; whose duties were to hold his breath for minutes at a time under freezing conditions and set explosives on enemy grounds allowing for American troops to maintain a stronghold on logistical issues was a critical manifestation for American fighting troops. I am talking about a friend who was the Community Relations Representative to Governor Ronald Reagan, again rare for an African American being a Republican in the 60's; you see this Man was about Principals as he was a very Proud American and absolutely Loved President Ronald Reagan. This is a Friend who went on to be appointed again by another Governor to the State of California as a Deputy Director to one of California's largest State Departments with a six billion dollar budget and a staff of three thousand employees allowing him to be one of the chief implementers of the welfare reform initiatives of Governor George Deukmejian's Administration. This friend worked tirelessly from the desert of Imperial Valley to the far northern parts of the State of California, speaking to audiences, Community Based Organizations, County Welfare Directors the list goes on; you see I can attest to this fact because the two of us did it together; as I served as his Chief Deputy Director and it is written in the annals of California history.
A friend is one who is there to share the wisdom of his knowledge serving as a consultant during difficult situations, this friend was always there for me being 17 years my elder, he brought me in to his domain and shared with me the virtues of calmness during a stormy situation. I know no one who knew how to enjoy life more than my friend and putting issues in perspective that life was too short to take to seriously. I knew no one then and since that could fish better than my friend. He was so good at fishing trout that he would catch a fish, hook it and let me bring the fish in - now that is a friend. This friend was so smart that while on our lunch break while working for the Governor an unknown lady called him a black nigger on/or about 1986 while approaching a mall lot and my friend asked her what did you say and the lady repeated it to him and he responded to her by saying: lady you need to be careful and your lucky I am an educated man as someone else would probably slap you, the lady did not know how to respond to my friend and others around started to give the lady some pretty stern looks, she quickly left, obviously she was a racist lunatic. The point being made is the wisdom of my friend. As his friend I can say this man knew life's virtues of love. He loved based on being a giver, a servant, caring for his loving wife (a white woman of Indian Irish decent) for years subsequent to experiencing a stroke in her fifties and always being there for her and his Children. One of his central characteristics was never to talk about others always look for the best in others and nourish that characteristic. Love, have fun, enjoy your life and always, always be close to nature, fish, hunt, go frogging at mid-night, barbeque (no one could barbecue ribs better then my friend and no one could fry fish better than my friend.
You see this is how you make a friend by sharing your wisdom, by being strong willed, by standing firm during adversity, by being there to listen, by teaching what you know, being a team player, by serving others by knowing your voice instantaneously after not hearing it for years, by saying his your Brother. This is just a small glimpse of my friend as there is so much more to be said about him, but will wait for further elaboration in my book to come.
My Friend is William Thompson (Billy) From Bakersfield my Brother who approximately three weeks ago went to be with the Lord at the age of 76.
Dr Richard c Baiz
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