What exactly is a shield lock? It sounds pretty cool. Instantly, visions of the movie “300” flash through my mind. Just a handful of men against the world. Historically, it refers to the total vulnerability of one soldier who holds a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. He leaves too many places open to attack, by pike, by arrow or by sword. But a group of men–even a small one–can each raise a shield and form a dome of protection that envelopes them all simultaneously–a turtle shell of defense.
In the modern, F3 sense it similarly refers to the vulnerability of each of us. Whether it be the call of the fartsack, the emotional ringer of a divorce, loss of a loved one or a battle with illness, we leave ourselves open to the sting of life’s suffering blows. But together, we stand a fighting chance. And it is in that spirit that I raise my shield for my brother, Diopter as he has done countless times before on my behalf. At writing he is in the hospital while covid, pneumonia and a bacterial infection stab at him in a seemingly relentless attack. I hope by the time you all read this, he has turned a corner and we are making plans for sharing a beer and joking about how crazy it all was.
But while my brother is under attack, I am raising up any shield I have at the ready. Be it prayer, be it words of encouragement, be it support for his family–whatever I can muster, I’m raising it for him because he has never once hesitated to do the same for me. And it is that side of my brother, my friend I want to share with you for a moment if you’ll please indulge me.
A couple years ago, my M, Kate had a contact stick to her eye. While trying to fish it out she got a small cut at the very center of her cornea. Soon, an unimaginable pain would take root. Frantic, I called Diopter, the friend, the F3 brother, the eye doctor. He didn’t answer on the first call. I waited what felt like hours but in reality was hardly more than a minute and tried again. No answer. Seriously? Where could he be? This is the most important thing in the world at this moment. When moments later I received a call back, I was a little upset and a lot of bit frantic. “Hey man, I tried calling you, twice!”
“I’m sorry, bud. My fraternity brother fell off a ladder and was paralyzed. So I drove across the state to be with him in the hospital and give him words of encouragement. I must have turned my phone off,” was his incredibly justified and noble excuse. After a brief explanation of Kate’s situation, Diopter was once again back in his car, racing back across the state to help another friend in need. Meeting us at his office late in the night, he grew ever more concerned. A referral to a trusted colleague followed and we were on our way early the next morning.
When the other clinic gave us a bit of a runaround, Diopter and I exchanged text messages. Within seconds, a knock at the door interrupted the, “let’s wait and sees” and the “try this and call me in mornings” and in came a doctor who took one look at my wife’s eye and instantly recognized what Diopter had seen the night before: a nasty MRSA infection threatening to wipe out her vision. Thanks to some very intense antibiotics, some horrifically painful days in a dark room and some reassuring calls and text messages from Diopter, the infection was defeated, the scarring minimal and my wife’s vision saved.
Our shield lock formed when myself, Diopter, Crablegs and Al Gore became regulars at Cyclone Saturdays. Forged through many a cafeteria the bond grew strong. From it came plans for participating in Dragon Boat, a James Island workout and a handful of other strange ideas. For a brief moment in time, it even included a James Island 2nd F Happy Hour (no, I’m serious, just ask my son, Calvin–aka F3 Hobbes, he was there!). Through it, I learned–for the first time–that there is strength in vulnerability from Diopter. I learned that the 3 Fs can sometimes work in reverse with 3 before 2 and 1 from Crablegs who backed his way into the group. And I learned from Al Gore how to serve our fellow community members in need with humility and grace.
So while Diopter battles these arrows of disease, he does not fight alone. Gear up. Shields up. Pray with me and continue to support our brother without hesitation. Because he has never once shown any hesitation in supporting us.
With all due love and respect,
-Vila