The Journey...

Thursday night, a couple friends from work arranged for a pizza party to say goodbye to us. 3 of the 15 people there once worked at Swifts, but have since left for better things. It was SO good to see them. We have a very colorful, diverse group of friends here. One of the guys we were so excited to see was someone who quit over 2 years ago. He is such a 'cool' guy. He is a total hippie in every sense of the word. He's a surfer dude with long straggly hair, who uses the word "dude" liberally, and talks about smoking pot. Haha. He is the most 'real' person we know and we have always had a connection to him, Shaun especially. Dale can tell Shaun something someone else has already told him, but for some reason it clicks when Dale tells him, unlike the others. We joke that Dale is like pot himself, because he has this way of calming you down. On his facebook page his religion is listed as "optimistic". I LOVE THAT!

He is the most optimistic person I've ever met. He's not judgmental in any way, and believes that it is what you do for others that will get your golden ticket to heaven. He is the type that would treat someone who hates him like gold. He works with someone who is always trying to get him in trouble, yet he goes out of his way to help him. He is amazing. We were very upset after everyone had left the party and he noticed. He stayed and talked to us for a good hour after that. He is the type of person who can make you believe that everything will be alright, even if you didn't believe it 10 minutes before.

He believes that life isn't about where you have been, or where you are going, but rather WHO you met along the journey. When we went to leave, he presented us with a card. It read, "Success comes to people who never stop dreaming, who trust that their dreams can come true, who use each new chance that each day brings their way... Success comes to people like you. Best wishes as you follow your dream." He then signed it saying, "Thank you for being a part of my journey".

We are so thankful to have met him on our journey. He is the most amazing Hippie I know.