You've Got A Friend In Me
Old friends are like good books that you have relished thousands of times. Those novels you can open up to any page and know exactly what has just happened and exactly what is about to happen (but you continue reading anyway). You know every word, every sentence structure, every punctuation mark. And yet, every single time you read, there are surprises. Thematic elements that had been brimming beneath the surface now bubble to the top. Happenings that were once just happenings now symbolically foreshadow.
You never pick up the book hoping to reread it in its entirety. While you did give it your full attention the first time through, this time around you can only afford to read a chapter or a section. This predicament was initially disappointing but you’ve come to terms with it. Knowing that you’ve only got one chapter, you savor each word – swoosh it around in your mouth or perhaps achieve the 21 chews. Finally, you gently place the book back on that shelf in your bookcase designated for good books only. It’s that shelf at the perfect height for access in a moment’s notice, at eye-level so that you might glance up at the book bind to hold you over until the next read.Old friends are like good books that you know you can open up wherever you left off, whenever you want.
Old friends are the ones you can call up in a heart beat knowing there won’t be any awkward formalities or expectations. You may have hours, more likely you only have a minute, but either way, the old friend is totally and completely committed for that time. You listen. You talk. You laugh. You cry. You notice neither the time that goes by nor the time that has gone by since your last reunion. Old friends are the ones who you always want to bump into, but never do. It’s with them that friendship surpasses the bounds of ridiculous social rituals and networking ploys into something so inexplicably genuine. Old friends are the ones who will still be by your side when you are, quite literally, old friends.
You never pick up the book hoping to reread it in its entirety. While you did give it your full attention the first time through, this time around you can only afford to read a chapter or a section. This predicament was initially disappointing but you’ve come to terms with it. Knowing that you’ve only got one chapter, you savor each word – swoosh it around in your mouth or perhaps achieve the 21 chews. Finally, you gently place the book back on that shelf in your bookcase designated for good books only. It’s that shelf at the perfect height for access in a moment’s notice, at eye-level so that you might glance up at the book bind to hold you over until the next read.Old friends are like good books that you know you can open up wherever you left off, whenever you want.
Old friends are the ones you can call up in a heart beat knowing there won’t be any awkward formalities or expectations. You may have hours, more likely you only have a minute, but either way, the old friend is totally and completely committed for that time. You listen. You talk. You laugh. You cry. You notice neither the time that goes by nor the time that has gone by since your last reunion. Old friends are the ones who you always want to bump into, but never do. It’s with them that friendship surpasses the bounds of ridiculous social rituals and networking ploys into something so inexplicably genuine. Old friends are the ones who will still be by your side when you are, quite literally, old friends.
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