Expoundable Final Quote

"Friendship is the greatest of worldly goods. Certainly to me it is the chief happiness of life. If I had to give a piece of advice to a young man about a place to live, I think I should say, "sacrifice almost everything to live where you can be near your friends." I know I am very fortunate in that respect."

- C.S. Lewis

Yes, Jack knew something about life and the value of friendship.

Is friendship the chief happiness of my life? I know my life is better if I see at least one person I love a day. Someone I can throw my arms around and whose heart I can press.

I went to work in Leeds England for a time in 2004/2005. A month in, I learned that my brother was traveling to London. The creatives laughed at me when I said I was leaving rehearsal early that afternoon. They stopped laughing when I packed my bags and jogged on out. When I returned the next day, they understood. I supposedly looked like a drastically different being. I cried to them, "Don't you get it? I haven't seen anyone I love in 32 days. I'm dying."

"Don't you love us?"

"Not yet."

I started to whither again pretty quickly when a colleague demanded I come to a house party. I hemmed and hawed and when she finally agreed I could come in my jammies, I acquiesced.

Smart woman and I am forever grateful. There I made friends I love. Friends I could see every day when I lived in England.

Now, we suffice with emails and infrequent visits. But there's a hiking trip in the Alps with one next Autumn.

It's across the world, it's good and it's certainly happiness.

And I thank you, dear friend, for the writing assignment. Yes, the world is harsh and cruel but these little expoundaments have given me strange happiness.