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This youthful man in his twenties with a boyishly handso eyes tells us that a lie is like a cage, and honesty is the key that all of us hold Each and every one of us has that key, but it isn’t enough just to possess the key We have to dare to put it in the lock and free ourselves to the world Sure, life in a cage of our ownisn’t so bad It’s safe It’s secure You knohat to expect You don’t have to face challenges Truth can be a very challenging power, and it can both devastate us as well as enrich us “Those of us still living in our cages,” Trey goes on, “with the iron bars of dishonesty and lies surrounding us, we grow bitter of the world outside We resent those who live freely We come to despise those who do what they want, who live how they wish, who … love who they wish” Trey smiles “Those of you who know me—and my husband—at all, know the very personal nature of this dance I describe between lies and truth Cages and freedoes, we have also convinced ourselves that we’re trapped because of other people We tell ourselves we have no power We tell ourselves they hold the key to our cage, and they won’t let us out We nurture an instinct to fight against our assurow dark, to rebel” A look of hurt and sympathy softens his eyes “You don’t need to rebel You never did My friends, you always hold the key”
With that, he announces that a special guest is going to speak now regarding his own struggle with truth, and relinquishes the pulpit to so-sleeve button shirt, tight Wranglers, and boots I’ve never seen the guy before, begging the questions of where he’s been hiding and how many more random people are tucked away in this town “Most of you know me,” he says to the room, and from the strained tone of his voice, it’s clear he’s nervous “I’’mornin’ Chad Landry So, uh … I’m here to kinda support Trey’s whole ser locks and … and all that Shoot, is it hot in here?” He wrinkles up his face as he wipes a sheen of iht plaid shirt “Anyway, I guess I got a bit of a story of my own to tell Most of ya know I live out on ht up here” With liot a boutique openin’ up, thanks to the generous funding of Mrs Cassie Evans” She sht nod of appreciation toward him “So you all know that much But … But I don’t think any of you know et where I am” He clears his throat “More specifically, the journey of how Lance, the sassiest darned guy in all of Spruce, careat pals with rade school, I … I didn’t treat hireat I ful I was mean I was a bunch of words I can’t say here in this church” Chad gives his friend Lance in the front row a knowing se There was a lie I kept tellin’ myself back then” He faces the room “It’s never too late to set yourself free So in the na I wanna say I’rips the podiuave up beer”
The roohter, the tension broken Even Trey, who stands at the side just off the pulpit, shakes his head with a smile on his face
Chad exhales with relief “Phew! That was tough to do! I was pretty sure there was a onna chicken out But hey, look at ood, I could dance” Then he peers down at Lance in the front row So with resolve as the roootta open” He takes a breath, then say”
The roo if this is still part of the joke A few others nod to themselves, as if they already knew or suspected I even spot Mrs Strong off to the side nudging her husband hat seems to be a told-you-so s proud of him