From “Kentucky River Junction,” by Wendell Berry
Our lives, half gone
stay full of laughter.
Free-hearted men
have the world for words.
Though we have been apart,
we have been together.
***
In the pause, the slightly-suspended animation between the holidays and the turning of the year, thoughts turn to friends near and far. Have we been too much apart, or together enough? What will the coming year bring?
A dear friend of mine prepared me for this. After high school, she said, you’ll pass into the world of adult friendships. You won’t see your friends every day, or even talk to them so often. And yet, with the ones that really count, you’ll keep in touch — then fall back together to pick up the conversation just where you left off, with all the words you’ve gleaned from the world in between.
And best of all — no matter what — stay full of laughter.
Colin Steele 