HIS LIFE MATTERED TO ME

Gregory W. Thompson, M.Div. Chaplain Resident Patrick B. Harris Psychiatric Hospital Anderson, S.C.

Though we never spent more than 20 hours together, his life mattered to me. Though he never married, had a career or finished school, his life made a difference in mine. Though he spent most of his life institutionalized, his life affected my choices. I am reflecting on the life of my uncle Lacy Jr., who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. None of us knows the Hell that Lacy Jr. endured. As a child, I heard that Lacy Jr. became sick due to drug abuse. His drug abuse strongly influenced my lack of drug use. Unconsciously, Lacy Jr. is on my mind as I minister to the patients at the hospital. May I care for them as I hope someone cared for him. August of 1980 saw him pass to the other side, where peace found him. Rest in God, Lacy Jr., and know that your troubled life mattered to me.

December 3, 1998

Orlo Strunk Jr., Ph.D. Managing Editor of The Journal of Pastoral Care 1068 Harbor Drive, SW Calabash, N.C. 28467 Dear Dr. Strunk, Please find enclosed a poem I am submitting for publication in the Journal of Pastoral Care. I wrote it in memory of my uncle who died in 1980. Lacy Jr. never received any special type of recognition, except a military funeral. After completing my residency, I plan to work as a hospital chaplain, hopefully in a psychiatric setting. Thank you for allowing me to share this poem. Grace and Peace,

Reverend Gregory W. Thompson, M.Div. 2418 Marchbanks Avenue, Apt. 37-H Anderson, S.C. 29621-2177 Phone (864) 261-9268