Lines of Friendship.

I've been going through my memory box and as I read the letters and look through the pictures I'm shocked at the blindness I had as a teenager. What shocks me even more are the item that are not in there. The intangibles. The everyday conversation whose only memory box is the memory of moments that contain them. I think about the unbelievable friends I have now. The ones that have gravitated towards me over the years, the ones that have been here for my latest plight. I then think about the phone call I had last night with a friend who, to my regret, I lost touch with for the last several years.

This guy and I go far back, we met when we were just 4 years old. He's one of the best friends I'll ever have in my life. This is not the first time we've lost touch for a while, but he has always been there when I needed him and in return I have always tried to do the same. Our conversation last night, was another typical moment for us, comfortable dialog between two friends who tend to know each other better than they know themselves. I did the lions share of the talking, but in any given conversation, it could easily be one of us as it is the other. What makes our relationship so special isn't what it has, but what it doesn't. There are no expectations, we never judge, never condemn, never need to apologize. We listen, really listen and things not said are generally understood. These are the treasures that do not fit in our memory boxes, do not yellow with age, they are kept fresh in the moments of our lives.

We've been through a lot in 36 years, he now lives in NC and I'm still in Jersey, he's married with kids, I have kids. Distance and time haven't dulled our friendship, we still find time and topic again and again. Friends like these are far and few between and I am extremely grateful to have them.

I started writing this blog, calling it “parallel lives”, but as it progressed I realized parallel would mean they never touched. Many people in my life, tend to stay on the same line, only veering off for seemingly brief moments and when our lives converge, I am touched.