Everything & Anything

Merriam-Webster has 5 definitions for the noun 'friend'. The ones that I prefer are "one attached to another by AFFECTION or esteem" and "a FAVOURED COMPANION". A common synonym for friend is 'acquaintance' but is defined as "having personal knowledge : FAMILIAR" and as "a person whom one knows but is not a particularly close friend". For most of us, the latter definition of "acquaintance" is the context in which we understand and use the word. Personally, I cannot really substitute the terms 'friend' and 'acquaintance' as the latter lacks the depth found in the former. My "dictionary" definition of a friend would then be "A favoured companion, attached to me (or vice versa) by affection or esteem." In my own words? A true friend is someone you can tell your darkest secrets and your deepest fears and KNOW that s/he will never judge you and neither use what they know against you no...

To my Darling Daughter, By the time you read this letter, I may or may not still be here - that's up to our Creator. If I am, then you can ask me more questions and I hope I will have the answers; if I am not here, then I hope that the answers to whatever questions you may have can be found in the things I have not said but have implied. You came into my life at a time I believed I would not be blessed with you. I had thought that the joy and love you would bring was never to be mine - it was a fate I was just beginning to accept. And then, God, whose ways are canny and unclear, sent you to me. Like a gentle breeze, you swept away the cobwebs of my loneliness. And from the first day I saw you, and until the day I die, I will always thank the good Lord for the gift of you. You have brought me untold joy, abundant love and many moments of wonder. I hold you in my arms and the sheer wonder of having you moves me to tears. What will my life be like without you? I pray the good Lor...

You look back and you realize. Not only are you alone but where the path used to be, there's nothing - how did that happen? Where's the person you were with? You don't panic, not yet, leastways. Going back, is it you, or everything seems unfamiliar; did you ever notice that or THAT? And was this here? Hmm. And whatever happened to the person you were with? Like a horror movie, things get worse. The path you took has disappeared, leaving in its wake a shaky bridge made of some indistinct material, stretched precariously across a gorge and on the other side stands your erstwhile companion. In the deepening shadows, your companion seems....different, somehow. You should get back to them but, wait, do they need you? They seem just fine and, are they really who you think they are? And they do not seem to notice you're no longer together. No matter how shaky that bridge looks, you should at least TRY to cross back to be with your companion. So, you step a little closer and...

What do you say to a person who has stolen from you - not money or material things, no. Your dreams, your hopes, your life? What do you tell such a person? What CAN you tell them that will bring all of it back or make you feel better? Is that person any better than a thief who comes to rob, maim or kill? Ah, we are all shocked, wondering where all of this is coming from and where I am going. It comes from the stories I hear of physically battered women, emotionally shattered men, and all the people in between who have had their dreams crushed, hope taken away from them, and been hurt and betrayed by the people who are supposed to love and protect them; parents, lovers, spouses, friends, children. I hope and pray I am not guilty of this. What about you?