The Road We Travel

Last week reminded me that we are all just visitors passing through this earthly world, and I found myself reflecting on the road we travel in life and the nature of friendship. After our family, the most important humans we encounter in life are our friends, the people we choose to share orbits with from childhood on. We pick our friends based on differences as much as similarities, because we round each other out and add a yin to each other’s yang. Friends share souls.

So many friends come into our lives at different times, for different reasons, and in so many various ways, and we become part of each other’s families. Childhood friends can last a lifetime, and I personally claim quite a few that have been in my life over fifty years now. We may not see each other on a regular basis, but we are always there in the background, ready to respond to a request for assistance or an invitation for a get together. Some of us raised our children together and shared all the significant events in life, while others were thought of fondly and we were always happy to see them when we crossed paths again.

Many times our paths veered in different directions, but that caring was always there, even if it wasn’t spoken of. We wished each other well, smiled when we thought of the shared memories from our youth, and understood that while we were climbing our mountains to face our challenges, they were climbing their own. In the end, we know that some mountains can’t be shared, for there is room for only one at the peak. When a friend leaves this earthly realm, they carry a piece of our heart with them forever. Their road has ended at the base of the mountain, and there was only one path left for them to travel, up to the very top. God bless you, my friend, on your journey.