People: Mike Stock

I'm a senior, my last quarter in college. There are a lot of people who have made a major impact in my life over the past four years and I want to make sure that I tell them how much I Love them. This space is for that, to tell people what I really think, how much I really Love them, while holding nothing back. I'm going to try and do two a day this quarter, making sure to get at least 100 people in. This post is about one of the tallest men I know, Michael Stock. Stock, I first met you at a starbucks social my sophomore year with Chris Ward. I thought you were cool at the time and I still do. We had a lot of quality talks and meals together that first year, and it set the precedent for a beautiful friendship. I have always been very thankful that you are in my life. I have always been able to relate to you because of your height and I do not know quite what I would have done without that. Believe it or not, someone like you, even being able to have a conversation at eye-level, has been so clutch in my life over the past few years. I have had the personal grace of being able to see you grow not only as a person but in your Love for Christ. But this post is about the impact you have had in my life, and that is palpable. You came and visited me during summer project and I really appreciated that. I have not always agreed with your life and I am sure that you have not always agreed with mine, but in a picture of beauty and grace that is not the prerequisite for us to Love each other. I think that you and I have always shared a special bond with each other, because of the height, yes, but I think that it goes deeper than that. Loving you has always been so simple, Stock, and I do not feel that I have done a good enough job at that over the years. But it has been an encouragement to me the way that you have continued to seek God through thick and thin, through times that are tough and times of rest, through times of having time, and through times of intense business. Believe it or not that has been so big in encouraging me to do similarly. I really respect the way that people feel Loved through you; that makes my job so much easier. I have been a big fan of yours and it has been such a stand-out example of grace the way that you have always been there in the little ways for me, like whenever I had problems with my computer or even just to be able to talk to you free from fear. Stock, I just need you to know that you have been a steadying force in my life the past few years, that your growth has encouraged and astounded me, that I am really quite thankful for you, and that being friends with you has been easy and rewarding. I pray that God continues to grow you; I pray that you continue to trust that He has your best interest in mind, and that He will lead you down His perfect path. Something that I have never told you: I think this year our friendship has been especially beautiful and you are someone that I feel like no matter how far apart we grow, you we will always be good friends