an ode (?post ) 2 a frd on her bday

Arun’s post started off a chain of thoughts in my mind ( acc 2 u all prob a jumble!) abt that mother ship of all ships- friendship. So what exactly is this elusive craft? A small row boat meandering through lazy life’s river, with u rowing sometimes and at other times letting ur frd do all the hard work?Or a huge tanker surging full-steam ahead, all on-board and having a ball (akin 2 the blog)? i was musing abt this and started thinking back 2 frdshps that came into my life and sometimes went out as abruptly as a fused bulb- gone kaput 4 no reason at all.
Frdshp is an essential part of our lives, thru childhood, angst-ridden adoles and immature adulthood. Sometimes a river, appearing suddenly from some source deep inside another person’s heart, starting sometimes as a tentative trickle, taking root slowly and then gradually maturing 2 a merry babbling brook, full of joy, shared times and shared pain. At other times in full spate like a river engorged with the fullness of life, sweeping you along and taking u 2 various places u did not know abt, then suddenly drying up and going underground like the elusive saraswati. reappering years later at unlikely places and in unlikely forms. Often it is like the tides, surging with happiness, rushing 2 meet u while ur heart has been reluctant and at an ebb. Sometimes it is like a mirage, shimmering tantalizingly out of reach, and when at last u have given up suddenly you r in a cool oasis, out of the arid desert. yet at all times, 4 me, it has been as soothing music for my soul. Each frd brings diff gifts into my life- I may seek out one 4 laughter, another 4 deep soul searching talks, a 3rd 4 the diff perspective she has and mayb a 4th 4 the way she counsels me out of my crises. However it is not fair 2 only talk of the fairer sex – the not-so-fair has also been my succor and my fireside.
Yet nothing can really match the deep understanding that is childhood frdshp. Untrammeled by social mores, free in spirit, u seek out frds whose spirit matches urs,whose minds resonate with urs and then ur hearts r full. Sometimes a pesky lil sis turns into a mature confidante, sometimes a snooty socialite turns out 2 b a caring human being, sometimes a plain jane morphs into an intelligent mind. And then there is no looking back. Ur spirits meet, ur minds soar, u r delighted. And this is something u cannot buy with money, gud looks or position- it has 2 come from the heart, because as the poet so rightly said – “ur frd is ur needs answered. He is ur board and ur fireside. 4 u come 2 him with ur hunger, and u seek him 4 peace……… 4 without words, in frdshp, all thoughts, all desires, all expectations r born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed. 4 it is his 2 fill ur need but not ur emptiness. And in the sweetness of frdshp let there b laughter and sharing of pleasures. 4 in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed” . so all u jealous cats ( bocas) out there this one is 4 sarita and reena and 2 u all later . happy new year