“We cannot tell the precise moment when friendship is formed. As in filling a vessel drop by drop, there is at last a drop which makes it run over; so in a series of kindnesses there is at last one which makes the heart run over.” James Boswell
This past week, my dear friend Lucy was here. She comes to visit at least twice a year, and has followed my professional career; was a great encourager during my years at Seminary; visited each of my homes in different areas of California – from Santa Barbara to Marin and Sonoma Counties; and visits me now in New Mexico.
Goose, as we affectionately call her, has been a faithful friend to me throughout these many years. We have endured some wrenching sorrows together, even as our journey has been generously filled with joys. I flew to the hospital in Houston to be with her when a beloved member of her family was dying. She was strong and compassionate throughout the ordeal when my niece was “missing under mysterious circumstances,” and all that followed. Samuel Taylor Coleridge says, “Flowers are lovely; love is flower-like; Friendship is a sheltering tree.”
Lucy has indeed been like a “sheltering tree” for me.
We have wept together, prayed together, and rejoiced together countless times. She is fun-loving and devout. And geeze, do we laugh a lot! George Herbert has said, “The best mirror is an old friend.” In this and other respects, she is a very generous one, as well.
On this trip we went to Santa Fe, and found ourselves enjoying the Square and the glorious weather. We shopped at our favorite store, Moxie on the Square; and relished the Asian-fusion cuisine at Jinja – a comfortably upscale restaurant owned by the legendary actor, Gene Hackman.
We had long conversations, wonderful meals out on the portal, and quite moments. The doggies also had a fun and relaxing time with Goose. Ah, what a life!
My heart resonates with Matthew Arnold, who in reflection asks,
“Is it so small a thing
To have enjoyed the sun,
To have lived light in the spring,
To have loved, to have thought, to have done;
To have advanced true friends, and beat down baffling foes?”
No, indeed, it is no small thing at all. Why not take a moment to reach out to your closest friends, and express your appreciation for their steadfast presence in your life?
