So much on my mind today. So many things have happened and are still happening this week. Yes, epic vaguebooking, but no one needs to read that essay. What I do want to state clearly though is how much I love and appreciate the circle of people I have around me... friends I’ve known for decades and friends I’ve only known for a few months... friends who challenge me, support me, frustrate me, push me, lift me up, love me for who I am and whom I love back in kind... friends who gift me with a word, a hug, a book, a Facebook like, a bag of coffee, or a prayer, but always a gift of their precious time and attention when there are so many other things in which they could invest themselves... friends I see every week and friends with whom I share a text maybe once in a decade but it still feels as if it were weekly... friends I’m still getting to know, friends I’m getting to know anew... friendships that are redefining themselves, friendships that I’m giving space, friendships that time and life have weathered into a soft and storied patina over a core of gold. I have on occasion compared it to my safety net as I walk a tightrope above... it might sometimes seem like I’m at a far distance and focussing on more “immediate” things, or that I might not even need a net as I make my way along the rope “on my own”, but it is because of my awareness of... and absolute confidence in... my net that I can balance so much better and travel so far. I may not always need you to catch me, but you’re the reason I still stand.