My Friend Jeff~
He married young, at the age of 18, to his high school sweetheart and went to work at the city's main industry. He was a hard worker and successful at his job. He loved his wife and simply adored his two little girls. He would tell me how he would love to spend special time with them after dinner, bathing them, and getting them into their pj's for the night and reading to them each night before bed. His voice grew husky as he described it and I could hear the tears in his voice.
They were together for ten years before the stress of his illness and drinking led to a marital breakdown. His wife took the children and moved over a thousand miles away and Jeff was crushed. His bipolar episodes came closer together and were severe.
Following the divorce he was involved in three short term and ill-advised relationships. In our conversations he talked about these relationships. As a matter of fact we talked about everything, our deepest thoughts and feelings were bared. No person had every known the inner me as he did, and I had never been attuned to another's feelings as I was to his.
When I was in hospital he visited regularly, often twice a day. When he was in hospital I did the same. I remember one time when he was manic, and had gone on a rage the night before. He had been asked to leave an establishment and had kicked in the plate glass door as he left. Before the police arrived he had broken several doors and windows as he made his way up the street. He was taken to the psychiatric unit and was in isolation with nothing more than a mattress on the floor. I kneeled down beside him and asked what I could do to help. He had not eaten, and his mouth was so dry from medication he could barely speak. He said that he needed a cigarette, and I got the attention of one of the nurses and pleaded with her to bring an ash tray and allow me to give him one. I also asked for a glass of ice water. I promised to remain and watch him while he smoked and finally permission was granted. Once again, I kneeled beside him and helped him to a sitting position and held the ice water to his lips.
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