The Mediator

There is a lighter side to drama. There’s the satisfaction of knowing that you single handedly helped someone you care about, when they’re going through a tough time. That you helped them realize something they may have done wrong, or showed them a different way of looking at things. I take pride in the fact that I could help when it was needed.

Two of my very close friends had a pretty serious argument the other night, that almost lead to blows. It was pretty bad, from what I hear. See, the thing is, being on day-shift and all, I had to go to bed early, and they continued to drink the night away. I didn’t hear until the next day about what happened, and it was apparent that it was pretty serious. The next day at work, I went through the whole day feeling like shit; not only because I was slightly hungover, but also because I was stressing out about what to do with them. It wasn’t really my place, nor really my business. But I felt inclined to help, only because I love them both, and I don’t want to see shit like that happen to people I care about, even if they’re doing it to themselves. I also saw a pattern form; one party was taking jokes a bit too far, and the other was taking things to heart way too often. The situation escalated from joking and horse-play to shit talking and then threats. Thankfully the threats weren’t carried out, but alcohol wasn’t helping any.

Today I had a mediation session with the two of them. That’s not a title I gave it, I didn’t try to make it too official or unwelcoming. I just simply asked one of them what happened, then asked the other, and then asked an unbiased 3rd party, and got three different stories. The 3rd party’s story matched more with one of my friend’s stories, so I at least had a pretty strong understanding of what had occurred. So I sat the two friends down in the garage, and asked one what happened. When one would interrupt, I would stop them, and tell them to just listen to the other. Made them take turns talking. Then I would interject with something to help the conversation along, and stopped them when things took turns for the worse. Overall, it was a good session, and we covered a lot of ground. Compromises were made, and everything is as it should be again. They’re closer than they have been in months.

Your welcome.