No, no, no, no!
What?
Oh, what?
- Nice sunglasses. - Thanks.
- You got a light? - No, no. I don't smoke.
Alright, I think I have one.
You look sad as shit.
- It's complicated. - Isn't it always?
- Where are you headed? - Anywhere but here.
Man, why can't people tell the truth?
I don't even know what's true anymore.
Looks like you could use a little more than the truth.
Oh, I think, uh, my phone's going off here.
Oh, yeah, excuse me.
Hello? Yeah hey, how you doing?
No, no, no, no, it's alright. Yeah, mm-hmm.
Mm-hm, yeah.
Mm-hm.
Hey, hey!
Hey, hey, hey, man!
Oh, my God, you just hit my bike!
So, oh, sorry bro!
- Hey, do you know where Fat Willy's Diner is? - What?
- Fat Willy's Diner. - What are you talking about?
- Fat Willy has a Diner. - Why'd you hit my bike?
- Uh-- - This is a vintage bike!
- Do you know where Uncle Billy's Favorite Things are? - What?
- This was my grandfather's bike! - It's a Mexican restaurant.
What am I going to do? I can't get these parts.
You're going to park in a bike area next time?
- Really? - Too soon?
- It was a joke. - Oh, my God!
There's no bike shop in this town.
How am I going to get this fixed?
So, exactly how far are you going?
I don't know, a couple hundred miles.
- What's so funny? - I smell road trip.
- Do you want a ride? - With you?
No, with the other person that has a van big enough
for your busted-ass bike.
Think of how hot and sweaty you're going to get without me.
Mm-hm, it's going to be going down your back.
Don't make me offer you a piece of candy.
Do you have any room in the back? For you?
Yes I do!
Oh, yeah, it's a road trip!
Be careful, White Lightning can be a bit delicate,
- but she's full of mysteries you've yet to-- Hey! - What is all this stuff?
- The bear's not a mean bear. - Do you live in here or something?
He's not going to bite.
- What is all this stuff, man? - Ooh! A fisherman?
Watch your pole.
Well, welcome to White Lightning!
Engineered for both pleasure and transportation.
My name's Larry.
- Cleo. - Hey, Cleo.
It's okay, it's just Cheeto dust.
Seems like you're having a bad day.
You just destroyed my bike.
And that's one way of looking at it. But you know,
I don't think you ride out in the middle of nowhere
with that bike unless you're running from something.
So what is it?
I don't want one.
I, I got told to take some time off
- from my job, so, just trying to get away for a bit. - Ouch!
Yeah, that's definitely a second hour
in the car topic, so let's just play a fun little game.
- No, I don't want to play a game. - I'm gonna ask you a question,
and you tell me an answer.
And then we'll be getting to know each other,
just Cleo and Larry
and...
if you could give all human being one virtue,
which would you choose?
- I don't know, pay attention to their surroundings. - Oh.
You know, be more aware of where people are
in the world so you don't run them over.
Ooh!
What's the last thing you cried about?
That's a bit too personal, I think.
Um...
Okay.
What's the next to last thing you cried about?
You can do either question.
Well, the last graduation I went to for some of my students.
- So you're a teacher? - No, not a teacher.
Math, you look like a math teacher.
I'm a youth minister, okay?
- A what? - A youth minister.
- I work at a church. - Like, you work for Jesus?
Something like that.
You work for Jesus?
And I've been sitting here in this car
and you haven't even told me about the Lord.
What happens if, uh...
your wonderfully interesting answers distracted me
and I like died, like that?
I'd just go to hell or something?
You got to help a brother out.
I'm pretty sure it's in your job description.
Along with, really probably voting Republican,
not liking gay people, denying climate change, avoiding, I don't know, science.
- Hey, hey, you don't know what you're talking about, man. - Definitely not a math teacher.
Boy I-- Sorry.
Uh, that was rude of me.
Not as rude as not telling someone
about the precious gift of eternal life.
But--
Are you even good at your job?
You're crying at their graduation,
but you can't even save a lost soul.
I knew I shouldn't have told you that.
Actually, how about this?
I'll help you out: Give me your pitch, Cleo.
- My what? - You know, professional religious types,
they always have to have a pitch ready,
because sometimes you encounter the heathen
and you have to be just prepared, uh, to,
to lure our souls into the divine embrace
of, uh, whatever brand of Jesus you work for.
- Do you really want to hear it? - No, I asked for no reason.
- Alright, so God is holy. - Maybe.
And, you know, we, we want to be with God,
but we can't, because we do bad things, right?
We sin, we run over people's bikes.
- We do bad things. - Well-- Okay.
And there are consequences to those bad things, right?
And...
we deserve...
death. That's the wages of sin, is death.
But, you know, God through Jesus
bore the consequences of those sins and defeated death.
Now we can be holy, we can be one with God again.
- That's all I got. - Ah, it seems a bit awkward.
No, it's, I mean, it's about like, sharing in the love of God.
That's what it's about, that's what the whole thing is for.
Well, I guess.
You should do more of the love stuff.
People love love.
You should, uh...
you should work on it.
If you're a youth minister,
I'm not talking about God right now,
then you've gone on road trips before.
So what do adolescents like to talk about on the road?
So let's imagine
I'm a young lad, let's say 13.
Hey Cleo,
how far is too far?
You expect me to answer that?
- If, uh-- - What are you even talking about?
- What about second base? - Oh, my God.
If I grab her titties but I...
- Okay, okay, alright, man. - ...hold it like this,
so I don't touch the areola,
is it, is it a sin?
When will you shut up? That's my question.
Let us consult with the Magic 8-Ball.
- And-- - Where did you get that?
Uh, I've had it since I was a kid.
It says: Prospects, good.
Never.
You're laughing!
I knew I could do it, I knew I could do it.
The last person I talked about stabbing their penis
with a spoon, they laughed too, Cleo.
Now, next time it's time for song, you know what to do, alright?
Me and White Lightning have never had an accident
- we couldn't recover from. - What's White Lightning?
That would be who you're sitting in.
This beast, this beauty,
this road professional!
Who names their car?
People that love their automobiles.
I know you know what love is.
White Lightning is full of love, not so much holiness.
She mostly specializes in road trips and
naps, she's really good at naps.
And what else does White Lightning do?
Never breaks down.
- High quality shortcut, Cleo. - This doesn't look like a shortcut.
- Well luckily you're not driving. - Are you sure about this?
- White Lightning, is it a short cut? - I don't know.
- This does not look like the right way to go. - He said, yeah.
We are going to get so lost.
Did you make a wrong turn?
No.
I think we're having a problem here.
- You went the wrong way, didn't you? - Nope.
White Lightning appears to be napping.
What do you mean, napping?
- It's off. - What?
- Can you stop it? - Well, I can use the brake,
and we can coast all the way this way,
- I guess. - Are you kidding me?
- I don't think it's a joke. - What are we going to do?
Yeah.
We are stuck in the middle of nowhere now.
Well, it's not nowhere.
It's in the middle of a shortcut.
I knew we shouldn't have come down this road.
Well, I guess you should've said something.
One more time than you did.
Ouch!
Jesus!
There we go.
Hey ah--
Cleo?
Come here.
Man, I don't know anything about cars.
That's why I ride a bike.
I'm-- I don't really know that much either.
Could you just, I just need you to put your hands right there.
Why is that? Ow, gee, that's hot!
- Why, why did you just ask me to do that?
It would have worked either way. Do it like this.
No, I'm not doing that.
Come on, just do it, we're trying to get out of here.
- How is that going to help? - You're going to pray for my car.
White Lightning's sick, I don't know anything about cars.
You just said you don't know much, Mr. Bikes-A-Lot. So...
Do your thing.
God, please heal this engine.
White Lightning.
Help us get out of here safely and quickly.
And help White Lightning get back on the road.
- Amen. - Amen!
Hopefully it works better than your bike after this.
I'm sure Jesus doesn't want you
stuck out on a road all alone with me.
Um--
- Nothing. - - You're going to have to talk to God
- about the efficacy of your prayers, Cleo. - Come on, Larry!
What are we going to do?
Don't worry.
We are in the middle of nowhere.
No, no, no, Cleo, don't worry.
You are looking at a human Britannica.
There's a reason I don't have a smart phone.
I'm the app for that.
That doesn't help to fix the car.
No, but it helps me remember how to get to the shop we passed.
Up and around.
I'm going to go to the shop, I'm going to get us some help and...
your prayers will be answered.
- Just go! - You really got to learn to smile some.
Oh, yeah! So, don't let anyone mess with White Lightning.
- Get out of here! - I'll take that as a yes.
And you're a little dirty, don't get on my couch.
- Jabez? You're Jabez? - Oh, you're a genius, huh? Look what you made me do.
- My name's Larry. - Yeah, that's great, Larry. How are you?
I think you're the perfect person.
- The man I'm looking for. - You're a thinker.
That'll be helpful.
I guess. Um, so, I have a little problem.
- Yeah, go ahead. - Okay.
So I have this new friend named Cleo.
- I hit his bike, he was on-- - So many details.
Well, so we were in my van, White Lightning,
we're going down the road, and then it did one of those
clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk.
- And so-- - Boy, that's really easy to figure that out.
It is? So you're saying you can help me?
Friday afternoon, 4:30, I can't help anybody.
But-- Uh--
We're kind of in a bit of a predicament.
- We don't really know anyone here. - Can you hand that to me?
- Yeah, yeah, yeah. - No, no, no.
I can't drink that, right over there.
- Oh! - Yeah. Yeah, yeah. - I understand.
- Now you're being helpful. - It's five o'clock somewhere.
It's at 4:30.
So are you just going to leave me stranded here?
Uh, you're going to have to file that under "not my problem."
I mean, is there even a place to sleep in this town?
Look around, does it look like it? No.
So Jabez, come on, when can me and you agree
that you could bring your mechanic skills
down to White Lightning?
Monday morning around 8:30, how's that?
- Like there's no time before that? - No.
Let me get a pinky promise, Jabez.
Alright, I'll take that. See you then.
The anticipation is killing me.
Hey, Cleo.
So, can we get out of here?
Oh, yeah, we can get out of here on Monday.
On Monday? Why on Monday?
Well, I met, I met a new friend.
His name's Jabez, the mechanic.
And see, I get there and it's like 4:30
and he gets off at five and he doesn't really work on the weekends.
Healthy boundaries.
What are we going to do until Monday?
Do we have to see it as stuck or an opportunity to be seized?
Wait, wait, wait, wait! Was there a hotel back there?
- Or any place to stay? - Good question. Same one I had.
Not really.
So there's not technically a mechanic
- or a place to stay. - What are we going to do, man?
We are stuck out here.
This is not what I expected, okay?
I just got on my bike, and I wanted to go for a ride
and get out of here, and then you come and you hit my bike
and now I'm stuck with you in the middle of nowhere.
Uh--
I don't want to be pushy, but
I feel like there's half this story I don't know.
I mean, this isn't ideal but--
They just told me I had to go for two weeks.
And what was I supposed to do?
I was just trying to clear my head
and then you go and you hit me with your stupid van!
Who told you to go where?
The church that I work for. They--
They told me to take two weeks off.
I was just trying to get out and clear my head
and whatever, figure some stuff out.
And then you come and you hit my bike.
- I hear you. - If it wasn't for you
we would not be in this situation right now.
Well, that's one way to look at it.
But, Cleo, and I know we just became friends,
- but it's good to know-- - We are not friends.
Yet. It is good to know all this animosity
wasn't just about that old-ass bike.
So,
suggestions?
I don't know, man.
Good thing I brought my camping gear.
I guess I could find a place to pitch my tent around here.
Yeah!
I like you, let's camp.
- No, no, no. I don't want to camp with you. - Here's the thing,
you get that side, I get this side.
- No, no, no, no. - With those guns
and these looks we can move on down.
The river's just around the edge.
We at least need to get the van out of the road.
Yep, but don't you think camping near water's a little bit cooler?
And somebody is a little steam pot and needs to cool down.
Let's move this thing, geez.
Alright, Cleo, on three give it the big old heave ho!
One, two, three.
Oh, my God!
So why are you on Jesus break for two weeks?
I'm trying to concentrate here, man.
Why did they get rid of you?
- Just push the car. - Come on, Cleo!
Give me just a hint.
You know Christians don't get all pissy for no reason.
- Oh, God. - It's usually about money, sex,
- not being a Republican... - Okay, stop, stop, stop!
Just stop for a second. Let's just take a break for a second.
Oh!
- What are you doing, man? - Ah, take a guess.
But while you're doing it, just say cheese.
Will you put that away and just keep pushing, please?
- I want to get there before dark. - You have to save
- the memories. - Just come on, let's go.
- Get this over with. - Alright.
Let's do it like a game.
Twenty questions.
I'm going to try to figure out why they put you in Jesus timeout.
- Just push the van, come on. - Does it have anything to do with money?
- No. - Ah, banging?
- What? - Is it about sex?
- Maybe, kind of. - I'm going to take that as a yes. Is it a woman?
- Well, not exactly. - A girl?
- A boy? - No, not a boy.
- A man! - Not a man.
Um...
- Did you have your clothes on? - Yes, I had my clothes on.
- What are you talking about? - Everyone has their own style, it's okay.
Do you regret it?
I don't know, I don't think so.
Woo, second base or more?
That is not, you're, you don't know what you're talking about, man.
Um... Were you acting or watching?
- Acting? - Oh, my God.
Just push, please.
Do you, do you think Jesus would be happy with you?
- I hope so. - What?
So if Jesus is happy with you, Cleo,
then why are they so mad at you?
Listen, man.
There was this girl, she's 15,
in my youth group.
And she came out to me.
And the church didn't like it.
I told her that God loved her just as she was.
You were her minister
and told her what?
Man, you heard me.
Pretty sure that's what they pay you to do.
Let's just-- I don't want to talk about it anymore.
Let's just keep pushing, please.
You got in trouble for telling someone God loved them?
- Yes! - And they sent you to timeout?
To what? Come back and be like, "God loves everybody!" Unless you're gay.
You don't get it, man. It's more complicated than that.
Let's-- I-- We need to get this off the road.
Well I mean, all means all.
Unless you like chicks and are a chick.
- Ready? - I think so.
Okay, to the left. Straighten out, straighten out,
- straighten out. - Shit.
Something just flew out from underneath here.
Probably a grasshopper. Or a snake!
You can feel it, can't you?
- Push! - Shut up!
Oh, yeah!
- Almost there. - Yeah, we are.
Little bit more!
What's so funny?
Oh, well, what do you mean?
That's the hill.
Feel like that hill was, uh, a sign from God.
Perfect place to camp for the night.
You, me, White Lightning,
and memories.
Oh, come on, Cleo!
We're going to have fun.
Me and White Lightning are camping masters.
We don't take in guests very often.
Only special ones like you.
- Hey, be careful with that. - And your grandfather's bike.
I know, I'm going to be delicate.
Going to put it right here in our designated
bike parking spot.
I don't need your help, Larry.
Well, alright.
I was wondering, Cleo...
are you mad they axed you?
What are you talking about? They didn't ax me.
I can't be mad with them. You know, I told them that
I would believe certain things and...
you know, I agreed with the Statement of Faith,
this is what we believe and you promise to uphold this
and all that stuff, and promised, and it's not their fault.
So you told them you would believe
that the girl who said she was a lesbian
shouldn't be a lesbian?
But you think you did the right thing
by telling her God loved her?
- I don't know, Larry. - I don't know, either. This is a bit confusing.
So, so what do you believe then?
Should you have done something different?
I don't know.
What else is on that list?
Does it like, got the good stuff too?
You know, like about the virgin?
Larry, she's like, 15.
- No, no, no, the BVM. - What?
- Blessed Virgin Mary! - Oh, my God.
What, do you not even have Catholic friends?
Are they not real Christians or something?
Even I know BVM is Blessed Virgin Mary.
She's like the second most popular person in your religion.
- Whatever, Larry. - Are you allowed to watch Ellen DeGeneres?
- I don't really watch much TV. - Will and Grace? Modern Family?
- You're a Seventh Heaven kind of guy? - Shut up, Larry.
- I think I lost a tent pole. - Jessica Biel's fine!
- I mean, when she grew up. - Oh, man.
- So what am I going to do? - What about, uh...
you got any apocalyptic horses?
- What are you talking about? - On the stuff that you believed,
when you signed it.
- You don't know what you're talking about. - Is there--
Blood?
Crosses.
Um... Look, if you need some help,
- I can help you out. - Just shut up, Larry!
Alright, I don't know. Alright, I don't know.
No, no, I meant help with the tent.
I left the tent pole somewhere; I don't know where it is.
Oh, don't worry.
We're on a road trip, we're friends.
Me and White Lightning got this covered.
One, two, three, cuddle party.
Big spoon.
Yeah. I'm growing on you. Give me that smile.
You can hold it till morning.
Hey, Cleo?
- What? - Cleo?
Do you like Chumbawamba?
Larry, I just want to go to bed, man.
Do you know that song?
About getting knocked down.
I was thinking more of it about you,
not your bike necessarily but,
it could be like, your theme song.
Whenever I have bad days, I pick theme songs.
We should pick your theme song.
- I don't really want to play this game right now, Larry. - Well.
I just kind of feel a little bit bad.
Not just for the bike bit, that was an accident.
But probably should stop making it a habit
of listening with headphones while I'm driving, but--
White Lightning says she has my back. You know what I mean?
Is this your attempt at an apology?
Well, I was working up to it.
Whatever, man.
Can we just go to sleep?
I kind of gave you a little bit of a too hard of a time.
Alright, we can hug it out.
Get off of me, man! Just go to sleep.
Well, just-- It's night time, we're camping with new friends.
We're just supposed to like, you know,
get tired, tell intimate stories you weren't planning on sharing.
And then we wake up in the morning a little closer together than we were before.
That kind of thing.
Larry, I am tired of talking to you.
And I really just want you to go to sleep.
Um, one question.
What?
Who are they?
This is my youth group.
- You know, from back home. - Mm-hm.
Yeah, so this is, this is us at a lock in.
- Mm-hm. - And, uh, this is at a big community event we had.
They're all like family to me, you know?
You know what I mean, Larry?
Larry?
The truth will set you free!
God, what am I even doing here?
Give me some kind of sign, make it clear.
Woo!
Hey, friend!
- What are you doing? - Oh, what's up, Cleo?
- What are you doing? - Uh--
Uh, I believe you call it digging in to the Word.
- What? - You're getting sticks.
I'm getting some Jesus.
Is that my-- did you take that out of my bag?
I think the Bible's for everyone.
You're the professional here but,
you know, the one with like, the shepherd
and the lost sheep and he's like,
here's a dude, he has 100 sheep.
One of 'em gets lost, and who wouldn't go get the lost sheep
and leave the 99 behind?
- You heard that one? - Yeah.
Well, that's a horrible idea
if you're actually like, a shepard, right?
You don't leave 99 to a giant wolf buffet
to go find the other one unless...
you're that kind of shepherd, you know?
- Yeah, but you know-- - It says, "He went
and searched until it was found."
Yeah, yeah, but, you know, it's our responsibility
to come back to God. You know, that's what the parable's about.
It's about us repenting and returning to God.
Exactly how does a sheep repent?
Is it like "baaa", and in sheep that's like, "My bad, God."
- It's not literal, it's a story. - Oh.
I was hoping you were going to baa at me.
It seems that if you tell the story
to a bunch of sinners, they might think
the shepherd just keeps looking until found.
No, no, no, you're telling it to the sinners
because you're trying to express to them
that they need to repent and ask for forgiveness.
Turn from their sinful ways, you know,
and, and then be welcomed back.
I, I guess.
I mean, he throws lots of parties.
He just has a party, and what's funny
is it doesn't say it's a vegan party.
So he might've even ate one of the other sheep for the party.
What about the coin one?
There's like, ten pieces of silver.
And this chick loses one.
And she, just like the shepherd says,
I'm not going to bed till they're all found.
And she's like, sweep here, sweep there,
sweep-ity sweep, sweep, sweep, and then she finds it.
And what's she do? Party.
What's with you and the parties?
The coin was lost. That's the point.
Well, I thought the point was God throws parties
when every time something lost gets found.
No, no, no, no, the coin was lost,
and now, after God seeking it,
we can choose to come back to God.
And then maybe I guess, there's a party if you want. I don't know.
Really feel like you're missing the party part.
Well, everything's not a party, Larry. This is serious stuff, okay?
This is life and death stuff.
So, so who's the shepherd?
God.
So who's the chick with the broom?
- Well, that's also God. - Oh.
That could get you fired.
Um--
So, if everybody is like, lost,
and they have to get found,
then why does the third story begin with two very found sons?
Like, so found, I guess they were conceived that way.
We're all sinners, Larry.
We all need to be found, we all need to be saved.
Yeah, but, I agree we're all sinners.
That seems to be
uh, the easiest little bit of the game you're spitting to believe.
But why,
why is sin the thing
that's like most true about you?
Like, isn't the most true thing about the prodigal son
who his dad is and not the situation he gets in?
He's always the son.
I don't know, I guess I hadn't thought of it like that.
'Cause like, he's sitting there feeding pigs.
And he thinks, "Maybe I can be a servant."
But the dad's like, finally you're coming home.
We should have a pa--
Don't say it, Cleo might get upset, party.
You know what I mean?
That could be like, high-quality new material.
I don't think I need any new material.
I don't know.
- Ask me to give you a pitch. - What pitch?
Oh, my goodness, I thought we were friends.
- You don't even remember like, just a little bit ago? - So you got a pitch now?
- Yeah. - Is that what you're telling me, you've come up with a pitch?
- Yeah, no. I'm just trying to-- - Alright let's hear it. Let's hear it.
- I'm going to rock it like J.C. - Alright, come on bring it.
Everybody is important.
If you're a lost sheep or a lost coin,
or even an angsty little teenager who's like,
screw you, dad, I'm going to take your money.
Like no, God's throwing a party
and it don't start until all are there.
Everybody, so do you want to party, Larry?
In fact, let's party in White Lightning.
'Cause I think we're going to have a great road trip.
Me, you, and guess who?
J.C.
I think you need to work on your pitch.
One, two, three.
Five, buddy!
Here she is.
Check it, Jabez, this is White Lightning.
Whoa, looks like you need to enlarge your territory,
stretch out your tent and strike--
Hey, who the hell is this?
This is Jabez, our savior.
The mechanic, my new friend.
You obviously know how lucky it is
to have me as a new friend.
Now this, this guy Cleo,
he's the one with the sweet bike I told you about. Check it.
Wow, beep, beep.
Please be careful with that.
That is really something special.
Oh yeah!
Here we go, camping time.
New friends, good drinks.
- I thank you. - Let's rock it.
So are you going to fix the van while you're here?
Oh yeah, absolutely. 'Cause Saturday nights I wander around and I look for work.
Then what are you doing here?
Can't you just make a friend?
It's like, we're camping and stuff.
- And what are you wearing? - My beer-go.
You want one?
No thanks.
Alright. Remember, sharing is caring.
You like fish?
It looks weird with their eyes all sticking out,
bugging at you.
It seems a little offensive just to chomp on something
just sitting there staring at you and such.
- You want to eat, don't you? - No, I mean,
I'm not going to say I'm not going to eat it.
Well, friends, it is a custom of mine
to play a little game, a get-to-know-you game.
- A question game of sorts. - Not this again.
What do you mean, this again?
Think of all the things we learned about each other.
Our burgeoning friendship was formed
over just answering a few simple questions.
And that was your dull personality.
We have a very interesting new friend here.
- Mr. Personality, you might say. - Yeah.
- That's what I'm talking about. - Oh, God.
I asked him if he wanted to party, he said,
"It's the weekend, I'm not working."
I asked you if you wanted to go for a road trip
and you're like
When you were young, Jabez,
what did you want to be when you grew up?
Well I wanted to be a fireman, of course.
Isn't that what everybody wants to be?
I mean, look at me. I'd fit the part, wouldn't I?
- Hell yeah, you would. - I'd go save some lives.
Save some little babies.
Make their mommies real happy.
Yeah, what about you, Cleo?
Did you want to save souls or something?
No, I mean, I guess I wanted to be an architect.
What's with your personality?
Why are we so open and outgoing
and what are you, a Republican?
What, what do you mean?
What kind of a question?
I haven't even met you and you sit down
and start asking me these weird questions.
What do you want me to do for ya?
I want you to fix the van!
Tell him why you were being all like,
"Oh, I'm upset, I've got to go on a bike ride."
- Tell him! - Sounds like you're on a bit
of a victim trip right now.
Oh, poor me, my bike, my van.
He got axed, but he's not wanting
to talk about it that way.
Oh, he's a miserable son of a bitch?
No, no, no, this is just a speed bump on life's journey.
- I see. - And so he thought he would
torture two fish in the fire.
You know, I'm trying to help you eat.
Quit your whining.
Ah, the great provider's here.
I don't see you doing anything either.
We're all so thankful.
What do you most enjoy or miss about being single?
Spreading my talent throughout the world.
Oh, man, what are you doing? You're killing me with this smoke.
- You okay? - You're killing me.
Is it the fish, or what?
You're like, wussing out about smoke?
Well, you know, I'm sensitive over here.
Jabez is not feeling too good.
- Hold on, hold on! I'll get some water. - Oh, you're killing me.
- Is it the fish? - Flush your eyes out.
Flush his eyes out?
Look, if this is serious, I've watched TV.
I know how the holy workers do this.
Just let me prepare.
Stand up, Jabez!
Okay. Yeah, that was helpful.
You see that?
I healed him, I healed him!
I can't see.
Larry?
Ha!
Be healed!
What are you doing?
- Spritzing. - Oh, man.
- And slipping. - What?
Spritzing and slipping.
You spray them each day, it keeps the stench away.
- Alright. - Then why do you smell so bad? Huh?
It's Sunday, let's get ready.
- I found us a church. - What?
I found us a church.
It's a worshiping institution
with a sanctuary and the people and the hymns
and the singing and the songs and the preaching.
I thought you'd want to go to church, Cleo.
Come on, get dressed, holy man. Let's ride!
Man, it's hot out here.
Hey, do everything without complaining.
Are we almost there?
Yeah, it's you know, up there,
yonder, around and stuff.
- You have no idea where we're going, do you? - I know exactly
where we're going and we'll be there at the appointed time.
You don't trust me?
I have to trust you at least a little bit.
I know. I mean, what kind of sane,
like good, talented, integrity-filled youth minister
would spend the night with some dude with a beard
in a van if he didn't trust him?
That would be a horrible example for all those teenagers.
Just saying. I saw that brown suitcase in there last night.
What's up with that? I mean, you got all your clothes hanging up in the van.
- I've never seen you use it, what's in there? - Uh--
It's just a bunch of stuff.
Uh, my mom sent it to me.
It's like, trinkets and things from my dad.
Are you going to give 'em back or?
No, it's complicated. Like--
- He died two weeks ago and then-- - Two weeks ago?
Yeah.
I mean, I haven't talked to him for a long time.
And then mom sends me this letter.
And she's like, your dad died.
I really hope you could do this for me.
And like, take these things,
go back to where the memories are,
and maybe you two can work it out.
Even though he's not there to go with you.
Which is kind of like, I don't know.
But I didn't want to tell my mom no.
- So-- - Yeah, I get that.
I'm off to Edmond.
- That sucks. - Two weeks?
Yeah.
I got nothing, man, I don't know what to say. Sorry.
I'm glad you're with me, Cleo.
- Well, well, well, Cleo! What do you think? - Not bad.
- A church. - Where'd you find it?
Well, Jabez and I were talking, and he had that like,
one hot cousin. She sings in the choir.
And then, uh...
There's a potluck after church.
- Oh, my God! - I love fried chicken.
Oh, hey, did you see that? Are you jealous?
Why would I be jealous of that?
It's not rusted out.
I'm assuming it runs.
Speaking of running,
- I'm going to have to hit the porcelain prayer time. - - What?
Excuse me, excuse me, got to go!
- Whew! - Oh geez, Larry.
- That stinks. - I rocked it.
Hey, when did we eat corn?
We didn't eat corn, we had fish last night.
- Wait, wait, you looked? - Yeah.
- Golden nugget surprise, man. - Oof!
Are you feeling okay?
Yeah. You don't know this, but you drink it,
you drop it, and then you rock it. New day.
- So when was the last time you were in a church? - Yeah, it's been a few.
So when was the last time?
Um... October 21st, 2009.
Wow, that's really specific.
- What happened then? - Next question, Cleo.
- Hey Larry. What was your favorite song? - The last one.
- Sorry about that. - That's okay.
I'm just pissed off.
All that crap about my dad, bringing him up
before I have to go to a church.
And then I had to go to a church.
- Have you thought about where you're plannin' on steppin'? - What do you mean?
- What do you mean steppin'? I'm steppin'-- - The preacher!
You going to take a step out on faith
- for the glory of God? - I don't know.
I thought he was talking to you.
- Why? - All that stuff
with your dad, man.
What, did my mom call you?
Yeah, we were talking back there.
Did she want me to step out on faith?
Yeah.
She would.
She's not nearly annoying as my dad.
But how 'about this, Cleo?
I take a step out in faith, for the glory of God, of course.
And you do, too.
I don't know, I think spending some time
with you in your van is a pretty big step.
No, no, no, on something else.
Maybe,
I don't know, what's something you've never done before?
There's a lot of things I haven't done before.
Uh... Are you still a virgin?
- No, not with me. - Next, next topic.
Have you done a keg stand?
No, I haven't done a keg stand.
Hey, when you stub your toe, what do you say?
I don't know.
Shit, shit is the correct answer here.
If you give me a high-quality shit,
I'll give a shit about my dead dad,
and I'll let you finish our little journey to Edmond.
Shit!
Oh, no. Yeah, that's really--
- I would think, just saying, with all your Jesus repression. - What do you want me to do?
- I just did it. - I need a high-quality shit.
That's like a step out on, yeah, give it to me.
Come on.
Do it, I believe in you.
Take a step out in faith.
You know what I mean?
Shit!
Oh yeah!
- Is that good enough for you? - That's what I'm talking about, yes.
Alright now, let's go for the big one, the doozy.
The F-Bomb, right here,
- right now. - Nah, no, forget it.
- Taking steps. - Forget it.
Come on, don't be a quitter.
I'm not doing that, Larry.
- What is your problem? - It's just words.
I don't know what your dad did to you,
that's making you want to play these stupid mind games with me,
but I'm not going to play along. Enough!
Fuck!
You feel better?
I bet it does.
You feel great, don't you, Cleo?
How you doing, Cleo?
I'm alright.
Today was a doozy,
but... tomorrow,
White Lightning's fixed, and we're out of here.
To somewhere.
You know how I said yesterday
that I thought that the church did the right thing...
- Yeah. - ...by giving me two weeks
to think about
my commitment to
the Faith Statement and blah blah blah.
I don't know, I-- maybe they're wrong.
Maybe...
maybe I did do the right thing.
Maybe.
I don't know.
That's a big question.
Just,
it's got to be more
than just believing the right things.
You know?
I don't even know what--
I don't even know what I believe anymore.
I mean,
I feel like I'm doing the right thing.
I just don't know.
It's--
It's got to be more than just getting saved, right?
Like,
why is it always about us having to ask for forgiveness?
Yeah.
I don't know.
You know,
there's some real shitty things that happen.
And saying that it's all God's plan,
it just doesn't work anymore.
I mean, think about that girl, right?
Think about how hard it would be
to say that to someone, to your family, to your community.
And then to have them reject you,
turn you away, and say that you're not important,
you're not loved.
They all didn't, Cleo.
You were there.
I'm not there now.
How do you know what the right thing to do is?
I figure if I'm going to be friends
with a minister, it's at least one
that is hung up on good questions like this.
I've met enough of 'em to know
that they could just repeat the shit they were told,
over and over and over again,
and then not even pay attention
to the fact that their unexamined questions
actually lead to people hurting themselves,
hating themselves, denying themselves,
and wondering whether or not they really matter.
Look, dude,
one of the reasons I'm just so pissed off today
is 'cause my dad did that to me.
And I...
He was an asshole and always added God on
to the end of the sentence as if it made sense.
And you know what?
They are just like, screw you, Cleo!
But there's one girl who didn't get thrown under the bus
because you loved her, I think that's great.
And honestly, I don't know what God has to do with it,
but God should start supporting people
who care about like,
just these people becoming adults that have questions.
I don't think it should be that big of a deal.
And I'm sorry if this is like, flimsy or something,
but honestly, dude, I rarely respect a human.
And I like you.
And if--
If I was gonna go to a church every week,
not once every seven or eight years,
and my daughter had a youth minister,
I'd be glad it was you.
Questions, doubts,
emo vibe and all.
Pretty surprised to hear you talk about God so much,
especially after earlier today.
I have no problems with God.
I guess I'm not sure she's a Christian.
I'm not sure I am.
Well, if you're not,
that tanker's going down fast.
My dad was an asshole about this.
Like, if you had a question about God,
then he had a question about whether or not you belonged
in the family and should even be there.
"Larry, this is a Christian home,
and in a Christian home, questions and doubts
are not accepted!"
See, if you were my youth minister,
it might've gone down differently.
I can't answer the questions that they're asking.
What am I supposed to do when they come to me
with these real questions about life?
And I don't have any answers.
I don't know.
Well, what if life isn't about
having the right answers all the time?
What if it's just about asking better questions?
I think we got to separate who God is
from what happens in our life.
Life is sometimes arbitrary.
Stupid, horrible things just happen.
And that doesn't mean that it's just a picture
of who God is.
Life is arbitrary, God isn't.
And so we have to have questions.
We just have to ask questions.
If God is going to be good and loving and real and involved.
So let me ask you something.
Are you going to do this?
Are you going to take all this stuff,
the experiences you had with your dad,
memories, places you've been,
are you going to go on this trip?
Are you going to do this?
I don't know how this is going to go.
But if you and White Lightning want to roll,
- we can do it. - I'll go with you.
I mean, I wouldn't have trusted you except,
now don't hear this as too big of a compliment,
I don't need this brought up again later.
But I've been present for a number of people's first F-Bomb
and yours was pretty legit.
Like, you flipped the whole thing around.
And then like, you dropped an F-Bomb
like it was your favorite curse word.
You're like, I'm flipping the script and fuck, fuck, fuck! Like that.
- It felt so good. - I won't tell Jesus.
He's always watching.
Well, I hope he wasn't watching then.
You're on a roll.
A roll of firsts tonight.
And I don't know
necessarily if the Lord provided.
The Lord provided what?
A way for you to continue your roll of firsts.
What do you mean my roll of firsts?
- Like, to roll. - What are you talking about?
Oh, my God, Christians.
Oh, man, what is this?
Is that what this is?
Where did you get this?
You're the cutest youth minister
- I've ever met. - Oh, my God.
So cute, and that's why--
Is that my Bible?
- Maybe. - Did you take that
out of my bag again?
So,
you know, there's this page with the, man shall not lay
with another man like he lays with a woman,
abomination thing. It's an excellent selection.
Selection for what?
- What, what are you doing? - For our rolling paper.
What? No, no, no, no, no!
- Put that back. - Puff, puff pass Leviticus.
No, no, no, no, leave that alone, man.
Come on!
- Ow! - Did you tear that out?
Don't ask, don't tell.
Jabez,
any chance I could get your help
- you know, moving him? - You realize I'll be
- adding this to your bill? - I'm not surprised.
If you grab his feet.
Touch his nasty-ass feet.
Let's try it like this.
Alright, maybe not.
Come on, you're a big boy.
Oh yeah, that looks comfortable.
Your end first?
I got to take a break for a second.
Is your mangina hurting or what?
Fit him like that.
He's a heavy son of a bitch.
Grab his legs.
This one first.
Alright, mom.
I guess that's one way
to finally lose some weight, Pops.
I can't believe I got talked into doing this.
A letter.
He never wrote me a letter.
Larry,
I'm sorry.
I know you might not believe me,
but I'm really sorry.
And I'm disappointed in myself
because I walked away from you
on the day you needed a dad,
more than any other.
I have failed you.
I was too stubborn
to say I'm sorry.
Or maybe I was just too weak.
I'm happy to have been your dad.
But every day since you've been gone...
I regretted what I said and I did.
I don't deserve to be your dad. I hope you can forgive me.
When I think of you, I think of
memories that make me smile.
From the days
I got close to being the dad you deserved.
They've been by my bedside
till the end.
You're my boy.
Dad.
Look, Dad, I said I'd do this.
So I'm going to do it.
Dad, since you can't talk back right now,
it's probably a good time to tell you
I didn't even like baseball.
When I started,
I did it 'cause you said you'd coach.
I just wanted
some day, some time on the schedule,
where I knew I got your attention.
And if I did good
I could get you to smile and know that you're proud of me.
And you'd say, "That's my boy!"
And I always imagined that's what you were thinking,
but you didn't say anything.
You'd think, that's my boy.
I guess,
I guess I am.
It was my birthday.
And I had been asking and asking
and wondered if you'd listened.
And then you gave it to me,
my first camera.
And when I opened it I looked at you as if
there was something wrong had happened.
Like, why is this in the box?
And you said,
"You're not a boy, you're a young man.
And I'm proud of you."
The reason I wanted it is,
it was always weird that you only had
that one picture of your dad.
You don't even have any stories that you tell.
I never knew him.
And it's like, whatever you remember isn't worth sharing.
Dad, I love you.
I do.
But right now I really miss you.
Here we go.
Let's make some memories, Pops.
Man, where are we?
Hey, Cleo!
How did I get in here?
Uh... Me and Jabez put you in there.
You know, you had a rough night.
- So he came and fixed the van then? - Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sometimes I forget, my gas gauge doesn't actually work.
And if I forget that, then I forget to put gas in it.
Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're telling me, we just ran out of gas?
He brought the gas.
You mean to tell me that we spent three days,
in a van, down by some river,
because you forgot to put gas in the van?
Yeah, but three days with a friend.
Oh, my God, Larry!
What are you doing?
Three days is enough, man, I don't want to do that again.
We don't have to. We're going to Edmond.
Check it out, Cleo.
What is this?
- A big whale. - Look at it.
That's nuts.
But, who would build something like that?
God, you know, the big one.
Swallowed Jonah and stuff.
Come on, Pops.
Here we go.
So you've never been here before?
No, can't say that I have.
Well, everybody needs a first time.
This is super weird.
Seen this before?
Once or twice.
The ten doozies.
Or the don't-sies, I guess.
He and mom made us read a Bible story every night.
And he always wanted to read the Old Testament.
Jonah and the big fish was my favorite.
You know, this became a regular family pit stop
on road trips and things.
And we'd play, jump in the water and stuff.
- You played in there? - Yeah.
It doesn't look very clean.
That's not really a question you ask yourself
- when you're a kid. - I guess that's true.
Well, I'm sure you know this, holy man.
- I'm familiar. - But God's like, go to Nineveh.
Jonah says, "No, no, no, no."
Gets on a boat going the opposite way
and then God's like, "I told you what to do.
You're not obeying, go to timeout."
And then they throw him overboard, fish timeout.
I would start to get out of hand, not listening
to my parents, my dad would go,
"Larry, you're going to end up riding the whale." It was a joke.
I find it really hard to believe that your dad made Bible jokes.
You don't pick your family.
Come on, it's kind of funny.
It's pretty funny.
Come on, Dad, stay steady.
You almost spilled your dad, man.
Well, he won't be able to yell at me about it.
Alright, you ready?
- Yeah, I'm ready. - Alright.
- Say cheese. - Cheese.
This thing still creeps me out.
Not as creepy as two billion people thinking
Jonah literally spent three days inside of a fish.
Genre confusion.
Whatcha think, Cleo?
- Man, this is nuts. - Bishop's Castle.
Did somebody build that? That is crazy.
No, it's just a natural land formation.
Man.
So you ready to play?
- What do you mean, ready to play? Play what? - Uh--
We would always play hide and go seek here as a family.
Dad's here, I'm here, you're kind of like
the substitute for the rest of the half.
- So-- - No, I don't want to play hide and seek.
I mean, it does look pretty cool. I kind of want to go inside.
Uh, the way I see it is, I have the keys to the car,
and if we're going to leave, we have to honor
the old dead dad, so we're going to play some hide and seek.
You go look around, I will disappear.
And when you find me, we can leave.
I'm just going to go look around.
Don't get lost, alright?
I'm not the one that's going to get lost.
I'm a professional
hide-and-seeker.
Alright.
- Dude, Larry! - Finally.
- Where were you? - Finally. You are not good at this game.
For a youth minister, who I assume actually
has fun with their kids,
uh, you should know how to play hide and seek.
I've been looking for you forever.
Yeah, but it's a basic sneak attack.
You hide where you start, no one thinks of looking there.
I mean, you pick up that in middle school.
Alright, so I need you to take a picture.
Hold that, and me, Dad and Snookems.
- What's with the bear? - You know, sometimes
hide and seek goes bad. We start playing,
Dad's apparently hiding, but he just goes
into the restaurant and there I am,
crying up high, looking for him.
And he felt so bad, he bought me Snookems.
Alright, let's do this. Are you ready?
Cheese.
Do you remember when I first got in,
and you started giving me a hard time,
- and asked for my pitch? - Yeah.
Wasn't the nicest part of our trip.
Do you remember what you said?
Well, I mean, you gave the whole Holy Love thing.
And where, while God is loving,
God's also holy.
And holiness isn't down with us filthy sinners and stuff.
So in order for God to really love us,
God has to get the holy wrath out on something,
and obviously it should be His child,
who didn't do anything.
What if God's holiness is the perfection
of God's love, you know?
Like, what if what sets God apart
is His perfect and complete love
for everyone in every situation?
I don't know.
That's a significantly better pitch, Cleo.
Maybe.
Pull up, more, more, more, more, more.
More, more, no, no, no, not so far over!
No, no, you're, Jesus right there.
Come on!
Whoa!
- What is this? - This is the one place
my dad was cool. We had a small bet around the NBA finals.
I won, and I got to pick one thing to do with him.
And I said, "Break the law."
We spray-painted my rally finger
- over here. - Well, I'm really
- uncomfortable with that. - We're not painting again.
We're taking a picture. Come on!
I'll bet you've never spray-painted a wall before.
No, no I have not.
Can you pass me my dad?
It's pretty amazing that that's still there
after all this time.
Serendipitous, providential, you might say.
Alright, say cheese.
Cheese.
- Yeah! - This is pretty crazy.
My dad was obsessed with space. Like, a lot.
We always came by here and he would always start to like,
"One small step for man," that kind of junk.
Then I would say like, well,
if there's life on other planets,
does the same Jesus roll there?
Or does Jesus show up there like the type of alien they are?
And then die and raise from the dead again?
Or does he have to take a whole new tactic?
'Cause maybe dying and rising
is different or something. I don't know.
That is stupid. Those are stupid que--
- It's not a stupid question. - It's stupid questions.
- It's totally ridiculous. - No, Jesus floats up
in the Bible, he has to go somewhere or he's nowhere.
Let's say, they're like,
in 50 years got a little zapper zaps,
and they need missionaries.
And they holler at you.
They're like, Cleo, we need you to be our space missionary
- to the planet-- - Okay, I'm going to
- take your picture, just stop. - No but,
but I mean, are you going to tell 'em about Jesus,
or are you just going to show up and--
- Are you ready to do this? Say cheese. - Cheese!
Alright!
- Oh come on, Cleo. - Whoa.
- This place is pretty cool. - Oh yeah!
You stay right there, Pops.
- Are you ready... - I'm ready.
...to drive?
My dad's a cheap-wad, so we started going
to this campground over there.
And we had so much fun, we came every year.
Well so when I got into high school,
my dad was like, "Hey Larry, here's a roll of quarters. Take your brother."
And I'm like, "This is awesome, this is awesome."
Years later I find out he's only doing that
so he and mom could hook up in the camper!
God.
The human has been neutralized.
What do you want me to say? I don't know, I've never played this.
Just go get the joystick, we've got to take a picture.
- Okay, this? What do you-- - Yeah.
So, you know, eventually my tight-wad of a father
finally gets us a home system,
which is important, because we were the worst at having conversations.
So from like high school on if we had to have a father-son
talk we'd play video games and he'd be like,
"So how's it going, Larry?" And I'd be like, "Good."
"Alright, I'm glad we had this talk."
And then we'd just keep playing. But it was like, you know.
- So grab the camera. - Okay.
You stay right there, Pops. Hold that smile.
Alright, say cheese.
Cheese!
- Did you get it? - I don't know,
what do you think?
Well, we'll find out.
Alright, Pops.
Let's ride.
Hey, Cleo?
Yeah?
I forgot to mention something to you.
Do you have any pants?
I don't know, maybe. Why?
Well, I hope the answer's yes
'cause we're going to a wedding.
- A wedding? What do you mean a wedding? - It's a very sacred and solemn--
I know what a wedding is. Who's wedding? Why are we going to a wedding?
Uh, well, I promised I would be there.
I didn't bring any wedding clothes.
- Well I didn't know when you got in the car. - Oh, God. Larry!
- What? - I'm going to look like an idiot.
- No, you're a minister. - I don't know anybody here.
You know me.
And by the time we get done today,
- I'm going to have you dancing. - Well, I don't know about that.
- Oh, you're one of those type of Christians? - No, I don't dance at weddings.
Is it like, all of your kind don't dance? Or just you personally?
I just don't like dancing.
Alright, are you ready to change clothes?
No, I don't know if I have any.
Oh, my God, this is going to be so embarrassing.
There's only one way to find out.
Are you wearing that?
Of course not, I have my suit underneath my chair.
- Are you kidding me? - Yeah, I keep it there
for like in emergencies like this.
- Who do you think I am? - I'm going to go to a wedding...
- March in to a wedding.. - ...to people I don't know...
- ...wearing jeans and no suit. - ...in this?
I actually care about other people.
If I would have known, I would've brought something.
Proper planning prevents poor performance.
Really?
- What are we doing? - Cleo, this is a wedding.
So put some pants on.
- I didn't even know I was going to a wedding. - I thought
- you were a minister. - I didn't pack pants.
- What are you doing? - Putting pants on.
You can't take your pants off in front of a church.
Well, where else am I going to take 'em off?
My bad!
Congratulations!
Hi, thanks!
Let us rise!
Who brings this woman to be married to this woman?
Her mother and I.
So, I don't know if you've seen pictures
of just how adorable she was in seventh grade,
but when she was in confirmation,
you picked your own like, favorite Bible verse.
And I don't know if she remembers this.
As a youth minister, I hope she does.
It was at the end of Jesus' ministry
when he turns to his Disciples and says,
"Greater love has no man,
or woman, then they that lay their life down
for their friends."
So I don't know if you've thought about this,
but you're kind of signing up to know the name,
the person who's going to hurt you more
than anyone else in the whole world.
There's a bright side. This is also the person that's going to give you more joy
than you'll ever find words to put to.
And in the midst of that, day-to-day,
what's going to hold you together between the extremes
and topsy-turvy parts of life, is that you're friends.
Those of us that have been married a while,
have learned you're not always lovers.
But you can always be friends.
And if you learn to lay your life down
for one another when it's most difficult,
then you'll have that person with you
till the end of your time.
So when you think it's more important
to be heard than to listen,
lay your life down for your friend.
And when you think anything is more important
than listening to her, lay your life down for your friend.
And on the days where you have no words
to speak for each other, be with each other.
And lay your life down for your friend.
Hello family and friends.
My wife and I welcome you to our daughter's wedding.
Sarah, I have never seen you so happy.
And we have Crystal to thank for that.
Welcome to our family.
Let's raise a glass for many years.
Looks like I'm not the only one flying solo tonight. Claire.
- Cleo. - Nice to meet you.
- You too. - So, who do you know?
- Uh, just Larry. - Larry, really?
How do you know Larry?
That's a funny story.
About a week ago, he hit my bike.
- Really? - And now he's giving
- me a ride. - Oh, are you okay?
No, no, no, I'm okay.
He just hit my bike, so I'm fine.
So why did you get in a van with a total stranger?
That's a good question.
So, I had this job at a church.
I did some things they weren't too happy about.
And I decided I just needed to get away.
You know, I've been really wrestling with my faith
after that, and somehow I ended up here.
So, you know Crystal, right?
How'd you guys meet?
Well, we actually grew up together.
And when we were kids, she invited me
to her youth group. Larry was the pastor.
It was like nothing I'd ever experienced before.
- Yeah, I can imagine that. - He's amazing!
Like, very unconventional, for sure.
Yeah, I mean, I just found out he's a pastor today.
- Really? - I had no idea.
Yeah, he's a strange guy, but he just loved us,
no matter what we were going through.
Yeah, I think I'm starting
to catch that side of Larry.
Okay.
Claire, come join us!
Hey, keep asking questions. You're on the right track.
What?
Oh no, no, no!
What?
Oh, my God.
- Larry! - Yeah, Cleo?
Did you write this?
- Kind of. - What do you mean, kind of?
I was kind of like, your voice to text.
If Pastor Don were here, what would you want to tell him?
That no good, son of a bitch!
- Never cared about me! - Screw Don!
Why did you do that?
Shit, Larry, I was just starting to trust you!
Hey, Cleo, we playing hide and seek or something?
You don't get it, dude. You don't get what you did.
- I'm sorry. - Sorry isn't good enough!
You don't really have anywhere else to go.
That's not taking you anywhere.
With enough miles and a lot of enough awkward silence...
I'm glad you got back in.
Not that you had like, a lot of options or anything but...
I like driving with you.
So when are we going to stop for the night?
We're not going to really stop.
What?
Well, we got to get to Edmond
tomorrow 'cause it's my dad's birthday,
and I told my mom I'd be there.
If you weren't here, I don't know how I would drive
all night long.
So just think, Cleo, you're my mom's answered prayer.
Geez, Larry.
It's called stopping.
I'm going to pump the gas.
I'll just chill here.
"Dear Cleo,
we anticipate that your time of soul-searching
and prayerful reflection has been fruitful.
After much prayer, the Board of Elders would like to give you the opportunity
to change your approach to the situation at hand.
While we appreciate your positive intentions,
we cannot ignore the expectation of God's Word
nor our Statement of Faith.
We will maintain your status as youth pastor
contingent on your willingness to intentionally guide
the student in question toward repentance
and Christian counseling.
Her parents are rightly concerned about the situation,
and they are anticipating your call.
Please contact us once you've been in touch
with their, in Christ, the Board of Elders."
Oh, my God!
God!
What do you want from me?
Just trying to do the right thing.
And you give me this, "in Christ"?
Pastor Don, oh God, I can't deal with this.
- You take this. - Um...
Okay. I heard what the Board is asking of you.
What's the Board asking of you?
They're asking me to call the girl's parents
and make her repent and go to counseling.
"I heard what the Board is asking of you
and I don't envy your situation.
Honestly, I am proud of what you did.
I would've done the same thing,
but I can't just risk my job as senior pastor.
Whatever you decide, I'll support you.
You have tremendous courage,
and I'll be praying for you."
- What a coward! - A coward?
What a scumbag! He--
He's proud of you, he would have done the same thing as you.
But, oh, you would hate, you would hate
for your religious convictions to cost you anything.
This is why I can't stand Evangelicals.
They say stupid shit like that.
And you know who's completely missing from his text?
The girl, the girl who came to you wanting
to know if she is loved by God
because she's exactly who God made her to be.
And you know where she got those ideas?
From her church, where he's in charge.
And he honestly agrees with you and thinks you're courageous.
He can't think you're courageous and did the right thing,
and then sit there while thousands of kids hate themselves,
cut themselves, and some of them kill themselves.
There are so many teenagers who ask those questions
and assume God hates them, doesn't love them,
they have to change.
Parents, grandparents, friends, family,
because of God assume their kids and friends
and grandkids aren't good enough
and aren't loved as they are.
So it's just bullshit to hear that kind of stuff
from a preacher. No one thinks about it.
And they are so cowardly.
It's like they can't think about the dignity of the kid.
It's his job and your job, and Jesus.
That's the only thing on his mind.
I can't even deal with this shit.
I'm sorry, dude.
You deserve better.
Let's just get out of here.
At least he's right about one thing. You're courageous.
He on the other hand.
- Cleo, you awake? - What?
- It's morning. - I know, I'm so tired.
Well, we're not there yet. Don't worry.
Can you get the hat out?
It's my dad's birthday, I need his birthday hat.
Right, Pops?
What birthday hat?
There's only one birthday hat in our family.
Dad rocked it every birthday. He thought it was funny.
- Are you talking about this? - Yes.
He thought it was funny.
I found it endearing.
Look at that beauty.
He considered himself a bit of a
historian, he loved all the frontier stories.
Lewis and Clark, Daniel Boone, all that kind of stuff.
So he wore it on his birthday.
Couple more hours and we'll be there.
How are you feeling?
I just can't stop thinking about that email.
I don't know what to do.
What would I even say?
Call her parents? What--
What do you say in that situation?
I have no idea.
What a parent wants in any mentor,
is someone who's trying to love their kid
as much as they love them.
And you do that.
It's alright. Trust yourself.
Man, it doesn't matter anyway.
My phone's dead.
Unless you have one I could use?
No, I don't have a cell phone.
You mean you've been driving around
all this time without a cell phone?
Seems a little...
- reckless. - I'm old-school.
I got a map.
Look, we're going to pass a pay phone.
And when I see it, we can pull over.
And when you get on the phone, just remember,
trust yourself.
Honestly, if you were my kid's youth minister,
I would be thrilled. You're a really nice guy.
And at no point have I thought you didn't care about her.
And if I'm a parent, I want someone who's going
to try to love my kid as much as I do.
No parent knows the right thing to do all the time.
So some 20-year-old trying to tell 'em God loves 'em
might not either.
Give yourself a break.
We're close, we're almost there.
Oh yeah.
Check it out.
Welcome to Edmond.
Uh huh, what kind of place is it?
It's a great place to grow.
Yeah.
Ah so, remind me why we're here again?
This is the last place I saw my dad.
- Here? - Yeah.
It was--
It was my last day
as a minister
at a church.
It was the worst day of my life.
I woke up that day and my wife was gone.
It was the last day I'd ever see my dad.
I haven't seen my mom or my family since then.
And then after the funeral, my dad pulled me aside,
he just looked at me and said, "Larry,
this family doesn't believe in first marriages.
And neither does the Church.
Don't come back alone."
I'm...
I really got to do this by myself.
Are you sure?
Me...
and Dad have a little bit to work on.
So wait, who's funeral was it?
Hanna's.
My daughter's.
Do you remember what you said?
"Everything happens for a reason.
No matter how horrible you feel right now,
Larry, God intended this for good."
You have no idea what it's like
To go to bed one night with the family you dreamed of,
and go to bed the next night without your daughter.
"Larry, you're sitting
where I should have said nothing.
I should've
held my son,
and you shouldn't have been left to shake your fists
at God alone.
Hannah was your joy.
Like you are mine."
"I don't know what it's like
to watch your child die,
and be abandoned by the ones you love, but God does.
Forgive me,
my son and my joy.
Dad."
Well Cleo,
you ready to go home?
I think so.
Holy shit, Larry!
Hey,
pay phone!
Ah, kind of loud, though.
Hmm, that's what hands are for.
Just cup it.
Ready?
I guess.
- Hello. - Yeah, Mr. Baker.
- Yeah, this is Cleo. - Oh hey, Cleo.
Hi, yeah, I just wanted to call
and you know, I don't know what the Board told you.
Yeah, I haven't heard from the Board.
I just want to do the right thing
and I'm going to support her through this.
Alright, alright, bye.
I did it.