My friend is leaving for about a month to visit her parents in Ohio. I'm kind of the psuedo-housesitter while she is gone. Her neighbor will be keeping his eye on her place. He will also have my phone number in case of emergency. He will probably file it under Bogus Caretaker! There is nothing to do. Everything is automatic or unplugged or timed.
This morning I stopped in to get my "briefing" and pick up a key. That part of the conversation lasted less than it took to take the key and put it in my pocket.
The rest of the conversation lasted 3 hours, then we went to lunch (good conversation stimulates appetites) and talked even more.
I have known Julia for over 30 years. She was my divorce buddy about 35 years ago and my Maid-of-Honor 30 years ago. She has always been my best friend, confidant and, in the old days, my drinking sidekick. We actually had other associates who drank with us, but no one who could keep up!
One of the most wonderful things about her is her depth, her insight and how eloquent and articulate she is.
We can be speaking of the ordinary things of life and I may express a certain reaction that I may have had or thought that occurs to me that tweaks my mood. We might dance around the subject for a moment or two. I perchance will even rephrase the original statement or complaint.
She then asks questions, makes comments and digs....really digs, and, more importantly, she forces me to dig. Like a balloon popping at a kids party, a burst of cerebrum sagacity! I get it!
She rakes aside the leaves molding in the lawn of my mind, so that I might scan the landscape, unencumbered. There behind the cement quail with busted beak and the garden gnome is a throbbing lump in the soil. The clod may be 10, 20 40 years old, but there it is....hot, throbbing and very much alive. The Core Issue!
Core Issues! Whoa. Got any of those? Julia doesn't have a road map to get to them but I can attest that she knows the directions and she is not afraid to use them.
Every time we talk, over coffee, wine or tuna sandwiches, I learn more about her, more about me and more about the world. Now that is what I call a good friend.
This morning I stopped in to get my "briefing" and pick up a key. That part of the conversation lasted less than it took to take the key and put it in my pocket.
The rest of the conversation lasted 3 hours, then we went to lunch (good conversation stimulates appetites) and talked even more.
I have known Julia for over 30 years. She was my divorce buddy about 35 years ago and my Maid-of-Honor 30 years ago. She has always been my best friend, confidant and, in the old days, my drinking sidekick. We actually had other associates who drank with us, but no one who could keep up!
One of the most wonderful things about her is her depth, her insight and how eloquent and articulate she is.
We can be speaking of the ordinary things of life and I may express a certain reaction that I may have had or thought that occurs to me that tweaks my mood. We might dance around the subject for a moment or two. I perchance will even rephrase the original statement or complaint.
She then asks questions, makes comments and digs....really digs, and, more importantly, she forces me to dig. Like a balloon popping at a kids party, a burst of cerebrum sagacity! I get it!
She rakes aside the leaves molding in the lawn of my mind, so that I might scan the landscape, unencumbered. There behind the cement quail with busted beak and the garden gnome is a throbbing lump in the soil. The clod may be 10, 20 40 years old, but there it is....hot, throbbing and very much alive. The Core Issue!
Core Issues! Whoa. Got any of those? Julia doesn't have a road map to get to them but I can attest that she knows the directions and she is not afraid to use them.
Every time we talk, over coffee, wine or tuna sandwiches, I learn more about her, more about me and more about the world. Now that is what I call a good friend.
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