What I think of at three in the morning is never the same as at ten o’clock in the morning.  The labyrinth of safety and comfort, colliding with the unknown darkness, seems to be the most revealing of emotions. It is also a time that spirals into visual realizations and recognition, and a time when our mirrors move toward us.  Tonight is about friends.

Friends are bookends that bind our stories; some novellas, some poems, some cinematic, each friend  serves as a bookend to our personal history.  When I’ve lost my way and need direction my friends motorize me like a little engine, and when I fly without wings, they ring the bell to come down to earth. At times, arguments arise, and my friendships stray, but true-life friends never leave you behind. Sometimes, years may pass, and then one day, you get a call or an email or send one yourself,. The flushing of that particular squabble in history vanishes. You can start anew; at the same time, it is not.

The essence of friendship never burns out. It is our galaxy, celestial agility. Are you experiencing a startling outpouring from friends who’ve left your life only to suddenly show up on your social media or a personal email? Are your friends calling and writing more often?  I’m constantly examining some unfamiliar events in life, a new trend, a cultural change.  Seems like every topic can be mixed with politics, sometimes the mixture is explosive. I’ve halted the political discussions, and so have my friends, as they are more critical to my livingness than politics.

PHOTO CREDIT PHILIP TOWNSEND. The first time the Beatles met the Maharajah.