The dog is curled up in her foam bed, lined with an orange, red, and green beach towel. The cat is fast asleep in the car seat we left in the front parlor, after my daughter's playdate. They are both noble creatures in their own ways. They don't fret about tomorrow. They don't ask for more than they have. They don't strive for undue recognition. They give love freely. They are happy to play, eat, and snuggle. What wonderful role models.

I have a friend I'll call Sam. Sam is one of the most interesting people to talk to. He has lots of amusing and interesting stories. He is well read, and very intelligent. He has taught college-level economics.

But Sam is beset with a whole lot of intertwined physical and mental problems. He's nearing 50, and just this past year both his mother and father died. He lived with them, and now lives alone in their house. He tries hard to stay alive. He has tried to commit suicide several times, but he doesn't really want to. It's just that there are no real solutions to his problems.

The state of mental health care is tragic. Some might say Americans have the best medical care in the world, but if so, it's sad for the world. Try being so chronically ill you can't work, having only a handful of people who even acknowledge your existence, much less advocate for you, and then try to thread your way through the incredibly complex medical and mental health systems. Sam has at least 7 doctors, psychiatrists, and psychologists to deal with, as well as attorneys and financial advisors. Sometimes he makes good decisions, sometimes not so good, just like me.

Some people have said to me "you're so good to be a friend to Sam." That's not right at all. I'm not his friend out of duty or pity - I really care for him, and it's mutual. I'm not a substitute for his parents, his doctors, or his lawyers. I just love him, and I pray that God will sustain him and comfort him, and even restore him completely. He has just learned that he has been accepted for a relatively new type of treatment for chronic depression- the vagus nerve stimulator implant. I hope it works.