Iron on iron

Jack struggled all the way through the book with the living habits he had developed. His early philosophy of "Blow it off" worked for him until he had to show up for a paternity test and later when he fell in love with Jan. Then he had to grow up some. But he never grasped what Damon kept telling him—that there was a "big picture" to life. Some people think the big picture is a particular plan of the Creator for his creation or least for those who believe in him. Even at the end, in Jack's posthumous letter, Jack never bought into the Creator plan for his life. Instead, he wanted the big picture to be that a Creator existed and that his life had meant something instead of nothing.

Damon, too, seemed to be confused at times about the role of the Creator. He wrote several letters discussing either the idea of prayer or the idea that a Creator would care for Jack if he would come around to accepting the idea of a Creator. But, even then, Damon did not have well defined ideas.

But, in this arena of Life in which late adolescents are defining their values and trying to place individual values into an overall value system, most people would not fault Jack or Damon. Some people get worried that young people wait too late in life to select certain moral values and they become evangelistic in their behavior, wanting others to accept the values they themselves have selected. But, I think the real beauty of the two young men is that they really learned from each other over time during the days of their topsy-turvy world of late adolescence. Damon needed to loosen up and enjoy life. Jack needed to tighten up and take on basic morality.

When iron sharpens iron, the result is a sharp blade, one that is useful for removing what needs to be removed when cutting. Iron that is not struck against another piece of iron results in a dull blade, one that tries to remove what needs to be removed but it can't or it takes longer or it butchers the job.

Therefore, the book had a happy ending. Jack dies to be sure. But, through the process of sharpening himself against a friend's opposite belief system, he worked out a satisfactory morality before dying. And Damon learned that friends who live life more fully actually enjoy the events life has to offer. So, the old Hebrew proverb still has a universal truth at its heart. As iron sharpens iron, so one friend affects another. So-o-o true!