Friends

Albert Camus, French philosopher and author, wrote this: "Don't walk in front of me, I might not follow. Don't walk behind me, I might not lead. Just walk beside me and be my friend."

I was thinking about friendship this week as my customers were telling me of their enjoyment when they took holidays with friends. We have done the same thing, many times, so I could identify with what they were telling me.

I realised that I do not appreciate or value friendships as much as I should. There have been times when friendships were hard to come by for me, due to circumstances. Other times, there were so many friends we could not do justice to them and many had to fall away. There is the old saying that the older we get, the more we need friends who knew us when we were young. We are finding great wisdom in this. It also follows then, the longer we foster a friendship with someone, the more valuable it becomes. We are finding this to be true also.

So, to all my friends out there, and you know who you are, thank you for being a friend. Thank you for putting up with my quirks, my inconsistencies, my times of absence, my thoughtlessness at birthday or anniversary times, and my tendency to 'spout off'.

The photo above is my portrayal of friendlessness. A beautiful path to walk on, but nobody to walk with, a new adventure just around the corner, but nobody to share it with, and a park bench with a view, a place to sit and enjoy conversation while basking in God's creation, but nobody to sit with. And, worst of all, colourless.  I do not want my world to look like that, and thanks to my friends, I do not have to have it that way.