My Samson Friend, The Registered Sex Offender

The virtual Samson Society meetings have opened additional platonic doors for Rob, and me choosing to walk through those has instituted more and more friendships.  As such, stories are shared, and my horizons are widened.  And this is what I need to experience in order to hopefully become more sympathetic.

Last night, I dined with a registered sex offender.  Now, this was a first for me (to my knowledge).  And Eddie was amazingly welcoming (we dined somewhat on his home turf in AR).  

So, you may be wondering how all of this came to be.

Within the "Make Thursdays Great Again" Thursday night virtual Samson Society meetings, we "share our stories" once a month.  Now, this particular virtual Samson meeting is usually +/-30 men in attendance.  Hence, Mr. Justin Schwind breaks us up into small groups, of usually no more than four guys.  Thursday, (7/7) I had the good fortune of being algorithmically assigned to Eddie's Zoom small group, and this allowed me to hear a snapshot version of his story.  From there, we connected - after the fact - via Slack which efficiently allowed us to schedule last night's rendezvous.

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An old friend (native Jackson Metro guy) who's recently become deeply committed to Samson Society chose to take the plunge through virtual means in lieu of joining one of the five local Jackson, Mississippi groups.  

Why?

Anonymity.

He had no desire to risk rubbing shoulders, within a local Samson Society meeting, with someone who knew either him or his family - past or present.  

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Looking back to 2014, had I had access to an as well-established virtual Samson Society as there is today, I likely would have never joined a local group.  Now, keep in mind that both culturally and technologically, there's been a massive paradigm shift towards the virtual over the past three years.  This shift grew out of COVID-19.  No one could have ever imagined said shift prior to the pandemic.  But it happened.  And it changed everything.

I can remember attending the 2020 National Samson Society retreat in Eva, TN.  The vast majority of the speakers cancelled at the last minute in an attempt to protect (the few) attendees from suspect COVID-19 exposure.  I remember emailing Mr. Nate Larkin from my assigned bunkhouse, bemoaning his absence as well.  To me, it was simply unthinkable having a National Samson Society retreat without Nate present.

But this was our turning point.  For the virtual meetings had already been established well before the pandemic.  The groundwork had been laid.  The precedent set.

Hence, post pandemic, the virtual Samson Society community has skyrocketed.  

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If you're interested in truly getting your feet wet via Samson Society, consider joining a virtual meeting.  You don't necessarily have to jettison your commitment to a local Jackson, Mississippi Samson meeting.  Instead, use the virtual meeting as a complement.  You'll have zero regrets.  Plus, more and more guys will benefit from knowing you and your story & vice versa.  And this is where the magic truly happens.