One For All & All for One

I love the Three Musketeers! Always have loved the story and the movies that were made about the book, but I'd have to say my favorite movie is the one with Kieffer Sutherland, Oliver Platte, Charlie Sheen, and Chris O'Donnell (probably the most recent movie of the musketeers - well up to the one they are releasing this winter).  And I love that no matter what, in whatever situation, one of these faithful friends will inevitably drag the others into a situation that would put them in danger or at a minimum in some sort of unhealthy event. Not to unlike my friendships and relationships, the rest of the musketeers would gather around the one unlucky man and help in anyway to defend him (well, either that or laugh at him in his misfortune).  Yet, it's unmistakable through the entire book and later movies, the commendatory and love that these men have for one another. The undying anthem of the Musketeers 'one for all and all for one' says much about their friendship than about their military commitment. Although the anthem was a portion of their military oath, the men became much more than that during their time serving side by side. Each became the other's friend, confidant, supporter, and each held an willingness to die for one another...one for all and all for one.

An unlikely thing came up this morning, well besides my odd title, I opened 1 of my 2 books and read the 1st chapter in my "Friendship" book. I believe now that this has been poking at me for a while to open it and read it and as I am resistant, I denied that poking this week. I did, however, read one chapter in my "Angel Horses" book and that chapter, as I am finding with most of them in the book, are on friendship, the most unlikely friendships actually. It should surprise me anymore and yet it still does, that when 2 somethings are provided they will inevitably fall together and then somewhere in my miscellaneous life, there will be a 3rd thing that will draw them to a fine circle. That has happened this week even though I  resisted the connection and reading this morning pulled the drawstring to the connection. What was the connection? In a nutshell-pictures, reading, and scripture. Eccl 4:9-10 "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work. If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up." Ok so I'll go backwards, I think the connection is much more easily found this way. I read this scripture this morning, actually I have read it many, many times although honestly I had no idea where it fell in the Bible. But reading it this morning, I felt the strings of my heart pull together on the resisted connection. Over the past week, I read about 2 ponies, 1 to big to be considered a miniature horse and 1 unable to defend herself and due to a deformity unable to manage life alone. The 2 an unlikely couple ended up in the hands of a foundation to help children but they could never be adopted to a family. The foundation used the pair to teach young children how to accept one another no matter what, that the heart should lead not the eyes. The couple lived with the foundation manager for many years before the unhealthy pony died not long after the larger pony died too. The writer said it was due to a broken heart, that the pony just did not know how to live without taking care of her lifelong friend. The picture is perfect if you see it in your heart a friendship of love not of sight. I saw pictures this week of my son and his best friend Thad being played on our stand and thought of their friendship, this all prior to my stories and final scripture connection. I thought of how they were actually one friend no matter what, and as one they would never go without the other to a place of uncertainty. I saw pictures this week of friends, our friends, laughing and hugging, living the past weekend in joy, and thought, they would never let me go into a place of uncertainty alone, not unlike our sons.  The connection should be complete for you, altho for me it was backwards and took a week to draw together, I hope you see there is a connection of love from the point of the scripture to the pictures.
You don't have to look as far as you think, we just have to give in and see with our hearts. For each of us, I believe God put friendship in us. How? He gave us the ultimate friendship "one for all". The connection and drawstring were always there, I just chose to miss it, I hope you don't.