# Compassionate Friend



## Bruce Wayne (Jul 7, 2011)

This is my first post, a story about a man who is suffering just a bit of bad luck. Thankyou to anyone who takes time to read it, and I apologise if I have posted it in the wrong font.



Jim was a man down on his luck. In the time that had passed since his divorce was finalised two weeks ago today, Jim had; been made redundant, had his house burgled and his car stolen, and just this morning his boiler had broken, forcing him to have a cold shower on a cold morning. Jim was generally a positive person but this bad luck was beginning to get to him, it was like a curse. 

During a morning channel flicking session, Jim landed on an interesting lecture. He didn’t know what channel he was on, nor who was talking, but what they were saying made a lot of sense. They spoke of compassionate friends, something or someone that is with you all the time. This friend supports you, understands you, guides you in times of trouble and comforts you in times of stress. And the beauty of a compassionate friend is that it can be just about anything, it doesn’t have to be a person. 

Jim was convinced, this was exactly what he needed to break his curse. He just had to figure out what or who could be he compassionate friend ‘_Maybe I should get myself a lucky charm again’_, was his first thought. But then he remembered what happened to his last lucky charm. He had been doing some ironing, getting ready for a date. His cat, Eric (Full name Eric Catona), had been making so much noise that Jim knew he needed some food. Leaving the iron for a minute, Jim fed Eric, but when he returned he found smoke coming from the iron which he had left on his lucky boxer shorts. It had burnt a clean hole through his lucky underpants and left an iron shape mark on his new ironing board cover. Naturally the date was a complete disaster with Jim spilling red wine down his date’s new dress, burning his hand on a candle that was in the middle of the table and then falling off his chair, breaking both the chair and a few rather expensive wine glasses_. No maybe a lucky charm isn’t such a good idea after all_. 

Jim looked out his window at the cold cloudy sky. He made a decision. _I will walk up and down my local high street until I find someone or something that can be a compassionate friend. _Jim cooked some breakfast, which he burnt, and then made himself a cup of tea, which because of his lack of tea bags was more a cup of hot water. He then left the house, having to walk a mile to his local town. On the way it started raining and of course Jim forgot to bring an umbrella or a waterproof coat. He was soaked through by the time he reached the town centre. He finally got under the shelter of a bookshop, just as the sun decided to break through the cloud. Jim didn’t mind too much though, he liked books. Somehow he always felt good when reading a book. Just then he thought, _maybe books could be a compassionate friend_. Books can transport you away from life, to a world where you are nothing more than a spectator. And there is no danger in books, not for you as the spectator anyway. And some books can help you. Reading the right book can guide you to a career choice or it could give you the strength to stick to your own views. _Yeh, books are alright but they can’t support you, they can’t understand you and they can’t exactly help to pay the bills . . . unless you write them. No, books can’t be a compassionate friend . . . unfortunately. _

Leaving the bookshop Jim proceeded along the high street. He passed a coffee shop, where he smiled at a nice looking young lady who was sitting with her father, only to be given a "look at her again and I’ll break your legs" look by what was actually her boyfriend. Jim then passed a bakery. He loved the smell of a bakery but was so busy looking into the shop window and enjoying the smell he forgot to look in front of him and ended up tripping over a cracked piece of pavement. While on the floor he could hear a few chuckles, but no-one even tried to help him up. When Jim finally got to his feet he noticed next to where his head had just been was a twenty pence coin. He was more than happy to pick it up, maybe it was a sign his luck was changing. Then he had another thought. _Maybe money could be my compassionate friend_. After all money is something that is always in your pocket. And think of all the things you can own or experience with a bit of money. It can give you a house, a car, a television, a computer. It can give you electricity in your plugs, food in your fridge, water in your taps and heat in your house. It can even send you on a holiday or up in a hot air balloon. Surely money is the best compassionate friend anyone could ask for, isn’t it? Of course it isn’t, money is deceitful. It will promise you the world, but never deliver. Money is there for you when you don’t need it, but in times of need it will desert you. Money is not dissimilar to a morning in mid march, which through the window promises sun and warmth but one foot out of the door and you’re hit with the chill of winter. And as if to prove this point, when Jim looked in his pocket for the twenty pence coin, it had mysteriously disappeared. Clearly money has no compassion. 

Jim straightened his damp clothes and continued along the high street. The warmth of the white sun in the sky was drying his clothes quite nicely and steam was rising off of his shoulders. Jim looked to the sky at the smiling face of the sun and the spots of blue sky between the dark clouds. It was like every weather condition had gathered in the sky, which gave Jim an idea. _Maybe the sun could be my compassionate friend_. Think of what the world would be like without the sun, it could not exist. The sun creates every part of life, from the smallest of beings to the biggest, and not content with that it creates beauty within life. Maybe the sun could be the greatest compassionate friend you could ask for. All the daylight hours it is there and at night it lights up the moon to make sure we don’t miss it too much. It seemed like a great idea but then Jim thought about the amount of times the sun had ruined his plans. The times when he had made plans to play golf, and although the country was in the middle of a drought it still managed to rain on the day he had planned to play. And what about in the summer, when the sun is brightest and warmest. So many people flock to the beach and park outside Jim’s house that he usually can’t park anywhere near his own house. Once he had to leave his car four miles away from his front door. By the time he had made the trek from his car to his house, everyone had left the beach and there was a clear space again. No the sun is definitely not supportive, it plays too many pranks. _It is also unreliable, which is not a good quality to have in a compassionate friend._

Jim came across an ice cream shop. _I haven’t had a proper ice cream in years_, he thought. He entered the shop and asked for a mint chocolate chip ice cream, an old favourite of his. With the ice cream in his hand and a big smile on his face he left the shop, where unfortunately a startled pigeon fluttered in front of him causing Jim to drop his ice cream. Feeling more than frustrated Jim didn’t bother going back into the shop to get another one, he just continued down the high street. Just then a polite young man approached him, with a notepad and pen. “Can you spare a few minutes sir, it’s for a good cause”. 
Jim did stop, and he spoke to the polite young man for near on five minutes. They discussed the increasing problem with the shrinking size of tiger populations in the wild. They discussed how wrong it was that so many trees were being cut down and they discussed all the other animals that were in danger of extinction. By the time they finished talking Jim was more than happy to put his name on the young man’s list for email updates about what he could do to help the tiger populations. The polite young man left Jim with a ‘thank you’ and a grateful smile and Jim felt happy. If he got nothing else out of today’s trip at least he had given some time to a tiger charity. While Jim walked he thought about the polite young man. Maybe he should look to a person like the polite young man to be his compassionate friend. They had similar interests in helping the tigers and they had seemed to hit it off well. Jim had given his e mail address to the polite young man, so maybe he would get in contact and the two of them could spark up a friendship. Maybe they would end up taking a trip to India together, helping the tigers on the front line. Jim got fifty yards down the road before this idea was blown out of the water. He checked the time on his watch, only his watch wasn’t there. Neither was his mobile phone or his wallet or even the sunglasses that had been hanging from his shirt pocket. The polite young man was a hustler and the story about the tigers was obviously a decoy so he could steal Jim’s stuff. Jim looked around but there was no sign of the polite young man, he was long gone. _Obviously humans didn’t make great compassionate friends either_.
_
‘That’s it’_ Jim thought ‘_I’m not going to have any success today, I’m going home’. _Jim started his trek home, with the clouds beginning to form again. The rain came once again, like a waterfall, and Jim, who had all but dried out by now, was soaked through once again. While he walked he longed for his car back. Maybe his car was his compassionate friend. It helped him travel and go on days out, and it definitely would have kept him dry from this rain. Jim always enjoyed driving, he took pride in how his car looked and he always felt that he had a special connection with cars. A car wouldn’t rob you like a human; a car was there to do exactly what you want to do. A car is a loyal friend that you can take wherever you want without any complaints. _Could a car really be a compassionate friend?_ Jim thought it could, but as a car tore past him covering him from head to toe with a muddy puddle Jim didn’t want any car to be his friend. At that moment he felt he wanted to wage war on all cars. 

Eventually Jim arrived home, legs burning and soaked through to his bones. Jim headed straight up stairs to his shower, forgetting about the boiler malfunction, and had another freezing cold shower experience. Later he sat down with a glass of milk and a biscuit. He was joined on his settee by Eric the cat who seemed extremely pleased to see him. The rain outside had stopped once again and the sun was glistening on the lying water giving the pavements outside Jims house a mirror shine. Jim’s house was warm and comfortable. In here he was not going to fall over, or be caught in a downpour, or have his wallet stolen. He looked down at Eric the cat, and realised that he already had a compassionate friend. Eric was there for him every morning and every evening. He never asked too much of Jim, and never complained when Jim shared all his problems. He understood Jim more than anyone else in the world and what was more he supported him whether he was on top of the world or down on his luck. _If dogs are man’s best friend, then cats are man’s compassionate friend_ Jim thought. He lowered his hand to stroke his compassionate friend on the head. Eric looked up to Jim, smiling with all his teeth. The teeth which he then used to bite Jim’s hand.


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## garnerdavis (Jul 14, 2011)

I didn't laugh out loud, but I thought your tale was pretty easy to read, and interesting enough that I wanted to find out what would happen in the end.  If you're looking to elicit belly laughs, I think your premise is on the right track, but you're in need of a bit crisper execution.  I can't quite put my finger on what would turn smiles into laughs, and I'm afraid I can't offer you a specific fix. Hopefully, this is of some use to you though.


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## Bruce Wayne (Jul 14, 2011)

Thanks for taking time to read and comment anyway garnerdavis, it is much appreciated.


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## MissTiraMissSu (Jul 16, 2011)

Awwww... Poor Jim. He needs a hug. And the kitty will always love him! And chew on him. and bring him dead rats. No real issues. It read well, smooth and clean. I justt really think that Jim needs a spa day and a long hug. And a mother's cooking.


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## Bruce Wayne (Jul 18, 2011)

MissTiraMissSu, Jim took your advice and treated himself to a spa day. He had been enjoying his time until the end of the day, when he was accidently locked alone in the steam room for the best part of an hour. Dehydrated, he returned to his locker where he realised that he had somehow lost the key to it. He searched for the caretaker, only to be told that he had gone home and that Jim would have to come back the next day to get his clothes back.

The bad luck continues


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## Donthebat (Nov 29, 2012)

That's a cat for you. Self, self ,self.  Did he ever find a compassionate friend, I hope so.


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## Plasticweld (Mar 17, 2014)

Good idea for a story. I think that if you got into Jim's head while he was going through some of his troubles it might have given you an place to add some real humor. Re-reading the paragraph about his encounter with the young man and the lions. "All I could think of is "these lions don't have it so bad compared to me" each of the things that went bad offer an opportunity to inject a little humor based on his reaction.  A little bit of "This Can't be happening" or "Why did I think this was going to be any different" would have really made it more personal. My guess is this would be a great piece to expand on


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## Mudgeon Ramblings (Jun 15, 2014)

Pretty good-most people would prefer the bite part being left out i think. A few clumsy sentences that im sure you will resolve over time- Good luck!


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