Over the years, friends have come and gone. Some remained longer than others while the presence of quite a few was so brief that I barely remember them. The memory is nothing more than a shadow tucked away behind the platform shoes and bell bottom jeans they accompanied. However, there have been many people dear to me who simply floated away due to change of location, jobs and complacency.  If we were to meet today, we would smile  and hug, share family news and move on. I have found it impossible to reverse the flow of relationships, even the ones that carried no drama. I feel fortunate to have a few close friends that are privy to every crazy, painful and intimate thought that passes through my head. These folks are my safety net, the heart shield against the ugliness the world can produce. They are also the conduit for joy and love. Lucky me to have them.

Then there are the other kinds. You know what I mean. The ones who wring you dry and then tell you that you’re never there for them. The late night phone calls that detail how the world has wronged them and never of hint of their part in the ongoing melodrama. In fariness, I know that I’ve been that person in the past and I had patient friends who saw me through the maze. It’s taken years to change the behavior and sometimes I fail but more often I succeed.  As I age, my patience for the whining with no solution in sight is diminishing. That doesn’t mean that I don’t care. It just means that time is precious and I’d rather spend it with those who love me for who I am, not what I can do for them.

What’s the point of these ramblings? Just that I’m grateful that I’ve learned the difference between good friends, old friends and no friend at all.