Recently, I called a friend of mine who had been experiencing health issues for several weeks. When he answered his phone, he sounded like he was not doing well at all. When I asked how he was feeling, he said, “Fine.” When I asked if he needed any food, he said, “I have plenty.” I took him at his word as I hung up the phone, but I didn’t feel good about it. This bad feeling nagged me for about an hour until I finally called him back. This time, I took charge of the conversation and said, “How about if I stopped by for a visit and brought some food with me. He said in a weak sounding voice, “That would be great.” When I arrived, he was lying on his recliner looking depressed. We started talking about things that were going on in the world and then let the conversation meander wherever it wanted to go. Pretty soon he was smiling and eventually he was laughing out loud. When I got up to leave two hours later, it was like he was a totally different person—he was positive, upbeat and cheerful. The next day when I called him, he seemed like his old self again. Once again, a personal visit to someone is down can work miracles.
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