Day 98
friendship
I’ve been holding off on this one. There is so much to say, and I have been blessed with some of the best friends I can imagine. The line between friends and family in my life is often blurred; and the those who I call friends are also teachers, aunties, sisters, brothers, mentors and companions.
When I was in my early twenties, I met a few women that have literally saved my life multiple times; caring for me when both of my legs were broken, talking me through divorce, helping to raise my children. Beyond that, they have taken me on spiritual journeys through their art, their passions. For a short time, I met with two of these women each week to dance. We just turned on two hours of music and moved our bodies however we felt like moving our bodies. We moved around each other, safe, warm, loving, nurturing.
The woman whose art is shadowing these words is one of my most precious treasures. She has taught me how to give myself to what I love. She has accompanied me through these last ninety-eight days, faithfully. I trust her, and she has been a good guide in this world of creative discipline.
I have two sisters who are also dear friends. One of them has been with me through nearly every year of my life. My soul is her soul is my heart is her heart is my breath is her breath. We are true and forever.
I read today of Friendship, that we need to “recognize and practice it as sacred, as sacramental, as the presence of God on Earth.” and I was full of joy and validation as I realized that I have recognized and practiced it this way, and that it has been one of the great spiritual gifts of my life.
Just so Kari has something to grasp here, through her tears, I will end with this: When I think of my friends, I think of women gathered in a river washing clothes. I think of women singing, laughing, cooking, painting, making books, making blankets. These are the archetypes, the symbols, which we still embody when we come together.
In the end we will sign our names to each other’s lives, as the artists we are.
