A True Friend

We have been very tight for over twenty years; we partied together, laughed together and shared a few secrets. He even knows where the bodies are buried. As we got older, our priorities changed; life got busier. We saw each other less (about once every two months) but still spoke quite often on the phone and we always attended each other’s special family functions. For some explicable reason I stopped communicating with my friend. Perhaps it was I was depressed over my relationship with my younger son (later with that issue), I don’t know. We did not speak over Christmas or the New Years Holidays, he called a few times and spoke to my wife but I did not return his calls. Now you must be thinking “what an idiot”. Well, believe me the longer this went on, the worse I felt. I was ashamed and embarrassed over my actions. Eventually he stopped calling. I had lost my very best friend because of my self-absorption. Last May, I realized how much I missed my friend. I missed his voice of reason, his objectivity and most of all his presence. I decided to call. It took me days to gather the courage. I made the call. After making the call, I finally got the message of what True Friendship is. When he got on the phone, I was stuttering, babbling, apologizing and justifying. He only asked on question; “WHY”? I said I could not explain. He said he understood (he lied). We kept on talking and were able to be caught up with each other’s lives in about an hour. You could not imagine my relief. Things between us are as if nothing had happened. We do not go back to that dark time. I continue to reflect from time to time, as to why my behavior towards my bro was so bizarre.