These Are They

First up. I am not even kidding about these reading glasses. Amazing.

If I were to ask you what your favorite chapter is, could you answer? Can you point to one thing that stands out in memory? One occasion that changed your life?

My favorite chapters are the ones forming friendships. All my best and favorite friendships cannot be defined. I cannot point to the exact moment a line was crossed from, "Eh, you're okay" to "You are a very important person to me."

I love that. I love that true and deep relationships flow so naturally without definition. Something is the bonding agent. Something common. Something big or small. Without even trying you are drawn to each other.

Friendship can never be forced. It must come from the heart or it holds no value. I think this is why it takes more and more time to form close bonds as we age. We feel we have less time because we're aging by the moment. Because no one wants to be lonely. Because everyone desires a person to see their heart without explanation. We might try to skip some steps in the process in order to feel connected.

But that one person who would be your first call. That person who will come when you are in a coma. That person who will let you cry because they know you need it. That person who will buy you a box of Life cereal with a note attached that says "For Ang Only." These are they that flowed naturally.

One of my friends once said, "We are an odd pair, who would have ever thought we'd be friends?"

Love. Just love. That's what I feel when I picture us in the back of a van, heading to a show, hearing her say that. She was right. We are a bit of an odd pair.

But the beautiful thing? It doesn't matter.

Just like carbohydrates, only love matters.

I thought I'd never have opportunities, but time has a way of weaving moments and joy into our lives. Bonding happens when you aren't even looking, just like the lyric, "life is what happens while you're busy making other plans." One day you wake up, and have a dear friend.

This has been my experience. The best chapters. The very best chapters. My heart aches for the closed ones. Finds deep joy in the current ones. And hopes for the future ones.

If you need a bonding agent. Life cereal. Write it down.