I Promise

As we navigate the pathways, highways and byways of life, we often find ourselves in the position to make promises. When we were young the promises were simple and often too easy to keep or on the opposite side: impossible to keep. You know those young promises;
we’ll be best friends forever,
I’ll be good in school,
and I’ll keep my room clean …well, from now on.

These promises were broken, not because they were impossible to keep. They were broken because the issue was just not important enough to us or too grand an idea or ideal or the promisee was not due the honor of our faithful fulfillment. This is not to judge right from wrong, nor to say that our words have no value, I’m just stating the way things are.

Then there came the opportunities to make more sincere, but still unrealistic young adult promises.
I’ll love you and only you forever,
I’ll study hard, I’ll graduate on time,
I’ll stop seeing that girl,
I’ll help you anytime you need it,
I’ll never look at another woman,
I’ll make you proud mommy,
I’ll make you proud Daddy….you’ll see….you’ll see.

Though these were also promises made with the best intentions, they were also promises all too often bent or broken.

Fast forward to mature adulthood. Here we still make some of those immature promises.
Promises to our doctors;
I’ll exercise more or I’ll smoke or drink less,
to the finance company; oh don’t worry I’ll pay this bill on time,
to our friends; we’ll never part no matter what.

But this is also the time in life when hopefully we have learned the breadth and depth of what a broken promise can do. The time where we have made some major, sincere, promises. Promises made with our signatures on official documents. Promises linked to our livelihood and our ability to support our families. And even promises made with a ring in front of friends and family. By now we may have already hurt someone or lost something due to some of the important promises we didn’t keep.

Why all this, you may be asking about promises and such. What does all this have to do with today and the situation we find ourselves in?

A part of me is glad you want to know. You see I made a promise. I made a promise without trying to appease someone, without trying to shut them up, without a long drawn out speech about flying pigs or ice cubes in Hades, without being duly sworn with my right hand raised, and without a signature connected to the threat of repossession or collections. I made a simple promise to a simple man. The words of that promise are not important now….but know that since the day I uttered it, I have kept it. Know that there is no force on this earth that will cause me to break it. Before you get to the edge of your seat in anticipation of hearing the words of that promise, don’t bother…it was between me, him, and God.

But back to the point, I can’t possibly be the only one in this room that made promises to my father. I know without knowing that promises have been made by his friends, by my brothers, by my sisters, by my nieces and nephews. Some of those promises I may have already spoke of. Think now about something you once promised him.

My charge to you today, to all of us is simply this; if there is a promise or even a list of promises you have made to my father, choose one and purpose in your heart that beginning this day you will keep it. It doesn’t matter how big or how small. It doesn’t matter if you only said it to keep him from bothering you about something, it doesn’t even matter what the reason you made the promise is. Just choose one and keep one. He deserves that and more from all of us. To those who never made a promise to him, choose one you made to someone you love and keep it. Purpose in your heart that to honor the type of life my father lead that you will keep just one promise. As for me don’t worry dad, I’ll keep mine….





Written and read by SINYPCRX
at the funeral of his father.