As the sun set low over the western mountains , the old grey man sat down on the weathered oak stump . A special place for him . A place he came to dream when he was young , think when he was grown , and now that he was old and weary , a place he came to to remember . He couldnt recall the first time he found this sacred place , nor the last time . But that didnt matter , what mattered was he was here now and was happy being here . Not only happy with the moment , but happy in the quiet company of his memories .
In his long years on this earth , he had loved , cried , feared , laughed , felt pain as a lover and known pleasure as an enemy . But he felt no regret for any of it . He was thankful for every breath the gods had given him . He appreciated every smile he was lucky enough to bear . He caressed every tear he had ever shed , as a father might embrace a beloved child .
It had been many years since his last true friend died , but although he missed his friends terribly , he knew he was fortunate to have known what friendship was . Not just friends , no , they were brothers and sisters . Not of blood and flesh , but of spirit , and sometimes that bond is stronger than any blood tie . Friends who would gladly die to save a brother or sister . Friends who stood by him through all the wars and battles of life , won or lost . True friends .
So much to be thankful for so much that many would never experience . The first "I love you " , whispered on a hot summer night in an almost forgotten forest where he grew up . The first sunrise he ever truly watched , over the Atlantic on Daytona Beach , with his daughter barely 2 weeks old . Or the pride he felt watching that same baby girl walk across the stage at her graduation .
All these things he kept now in one place , one majestic eternity in his heart ,and in his soul .
As the stars began to light the sky in their sparkling brilliance , he slid onto his back by the stump to gaze upon the heavens. His hand brushed across an old scar near its base . A heart and four initials he carved when he was just a boy , now long forgotten . A tear rolled gently down his cheek to touch a faint smile on his lips , and as he drew his last breath , his smile broadened , for now he knew what happiness really was .
Archer
In his long years on this earth , he had loved , cried , feared , laughed , felt pain as a lover and known pleasure as an enemy . But he felt no regret for any of it . He was thankful for every breath the gods had given him . He appreciated every smile he was lucky enough to bear . He caressed every tear he had ever shed , as a father might embrace a beloved child .
It had been many years since his last true friend died , but although he missed his friends terribly , he knew he was fortunate to have known what friendship was . Not just friends , no , they were brothers and sisters . Not of blood and flesh , but of spirit , and sometimes that bond is stronger than any blood tie . Friends who would gladly die to save a brother or sister . Friends who stood by him through all the wars and battles of life , won or lost . True friends .
So much to be thankful for so much that many would never experience . The first "I love you " , whispered on a hot summer night in an almost forgotten forest where he grew up . The first sunrise he ever truly watched , over the Atlantic on Daytona Beach , with his daughter barely 2 weeks old . Or the pride he felt watching that same baby girl walk across the stage at her graduation .
All these things he kept now in one place , one majestic eternity in his heart ,and in his soul .
As the stars began to light the sky in their sparkling brilliance , he slid onto his back by the stump to gaze upon the heavens. His hand brushed across an old scar near its base . A heart and four initials he carved when he was just a boy , now long forgotten . A tear rolled gently down his cheek to touch a faint smile on his lips , and as he drew his last breath , his smile broadened , for now he knew what happiness really was .
Archer
