Paul died recently. He died without fanfare; fewer than 10 people attended his memorial service. I never met Paul and only knew him through my friend Greg, who became his caretaker. Let me tell you about that.

Paul was a client of Greg’s firm, albeit a small one. Paul had some special needs and lived with his mother. Even though it wasn’t required, he liked to pay his bill in-person and often loitered after transacting. Greg would always take time out of his schedule to talk with him.

A peculiar kind of friendship blossomed.

One day Paul shared the sad news that his mother had died. Feeling for Paul, Greg attended the memorial service. He was one of three attendees. That’s when Greg realized Paul had no one in his life other than his mom.

Because Greg is who he is, he became Paul’s personal advocate.

Greg visited Paul once a week and attended to his personal needs. He also got into the habit of calling Paul each day on his way home from work. No doubt, these were the highlights of Paul’s lonely days. As Paul’s health declined, Greg became his POA. Eventually, it became necessary to find a medical facility. Greg took care of this as well and visited Paul weekly in the facility, a good 40 minutes from his home.

I asked Greg about his commitment to Paul. I wanted to know why he did what he did. In his customary humility, Greg simply shrugged his shoulders. No answer other than to say that in an odd kind of way, he misses Paul.

Leadership can take many forms but sometimes the most powerful, and the most needed, is servanthood.