Thursday, January 17, 2019

Ode to Friendship


I spoke today with a friend. And my whole day has already brightened. I have not known her for long, and we do not even meet or chat as often as we like. But I know she is there for me, and I hope she believes that about me too. That got me thinking of friendship.
What elevates us from animals, for there are very few things in which we are above brute animals, is not technology, intellect, or silly things like cooking our food - it is our ability to foster long-term relationships of a very wide spectrum; of which friendship is the noblest and rarest.
It is often pointed out that though we cannot choose family, we do choose our friends. I believe we do not chose friends. They happen. You meet the person you need at that special point in your life.
That friend you grew up with who, even today, is as easy to be with as air. School friends reconnecting after years, and bonding even more deeply. The friends who suddenly come into your life to step in and help you rise from the ashes. The friends you make while chatting at a warehouse. The real friends you make on Facebook. The friends who live in the neighborhood of your new home. The friends who begin as co-workers and become a part of not only your life, but of who you are.
They are an inalienable part of, and the joy of, living my life.
So how would one describe friendship? It is knowing that the person in the other part of the equation values you as much as you value her or him. It is complete acceptance and understanding the core person; it is a comfort level that does not change with seasons of status and age, or with the vicissitudes of life and the distances it puts between friends at times. That is the most beautiful thing about friendship- distance and time do not matter. You pick up where you left off. Or not at all, and just start afresh.
Deep friendships require very little work, and it is the fortunate who have those. But friendship is essential in any relationship. You cannot be a good parent, child, sibling, spouse or coworker unless you are also friends.
I have many people I care for, in my family and outside, and can give them no greater compliment than that they are my friends.
“The language of friendship is not words but meanings.”
-Henry David Thoreau

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Why I Write

This blog is an attempt to bring out a new twist on accepted notions of society. It is an attempt to get the reader to take off the tinted glasses and look at the world with fresh eyes. If you agree with the ideas of this blog, and think anew, I would consider myself successful. If you do not agree with the thoughts on this blog and cement your own notions, it still made you think, and my work is done.
Look at the world with a refractive lens. The truth will stand out.


If you like my blog, you might want to check out my book for children-

Enchanting Fables (PublishAmerica)