"YOU NEED CHAOS IN YOUR SOUL TO GIVE BIRTH TO A DANCING STAR".
Nietzsche © Copyright applies to all content: 2007/08/09/10/11/15/16/17...

Thursday, February 01, 2007

"Mardigras" - Seven


"What is a friend?
I will tell you.
It is a person with whom you dare to be yourself.
Your soul can be naked with him.
He seems to ask of you to put on nothing, only to be what you are.
He does not want you to be better or worse.
When you are with him, you feel as a prisoner feels who has been declared innocent. You do not have to be on your guard.
You can say what you think, so long as it is genuinely you.
He understands those contradictions in your nature that lead others to misjudge you. With him you breathe freely.
You can allow your little vanities and envies and hates and vicious sparks, your meannesses and absurdities and, in opening them up to him, they are lost, dissolved on the white ocean of his loyalty .
He understands. You do not have to be careful .
You can abuse him, neglect him, tolerate him.
Best of all, you can keep still with him. It makes no matter. He likes you.
He is like fire that purges to the bone. He understands.
You can weep with him, sin with him, laugh with him, pray with him. Through it all - and underneath - he sees, knows and loves you .
A friend? What is a friend?
Just one, I repeat, with whom you dare to be yourself."
by C. Raymond Beran

12 comments:

vinay said...

true friends are hard to come by!!
FRIENDS--Few Relations In lifE Never Ends!!

Alicia M B Ballard StudioGaleria said...

So young and so wise...dear Vinay.
I though it was a North American malaise, hmmmm!

True, so true I always had "friends". Sometimes a lot, as I always knew a lot of people.
In time I found that they "appeared" to be friends.

Nowadays - as my favorite "spiritual/self-help" author Caroline Myss says - I am like a warrior, continually scanning the horizon, assessing and eliminating that which is not desirable... - yes, and it not easy to continually "flow" in and out of others lives and have them do the same. On the other hand that is the almost the only opportunity to expand oneself, and not become "stagnant".

Which, makes our strong/true friendships even more precios.

Love and joy

QUASAR9 said...

Yep, that is a friend
A True Friend will always
let you be who you are

A True Friend will never want
you to be more or less than U R

QUASAR9 said...

Yep, that is a friend
A True Friend will always
let you be who you are

A True Friend will never want
you to be more or less than U R

Alicia M B Ballard StudioGaleria said...

And, at times until one gets used to, it feels "odd" to actually just be...

Thank you dear Q
have a superb weekend

Anonymous said...

Hi Angel!
Good friend is worth more than rubies. Who can find him/her ?

Your new layaut is wonderful!!!

Have a great weekend!

Pauline said...

I really like this picture, did you take the photograph? the friend poem is beautiful; it took me on a journey. I chose a road that was uplifting and full of embrace. I sincerely thank you for sharing this piece!

Anonymous said...

That is so true, Angel, we can have many acquaintances but without one true friend the world can be a very lonely place.
Thank you for the introduction to Raymond Beran.
Have a happy weekend.

Alicia M B Ballard StudioGaleria said...

Thank you Krystyna
I do like "my new look" myself, if I may say so.

Special friends are truly rare.
I have recently realized I have one such as the one described...
it brings the soul to a place of "joy"

Have a great weekend too!

Alicia M B Ballard StudioGaleria said...

Dear Pauline
I snachet it up from Irene!
Could not pass up sharing it as I sent copy of it to my precious, ever so gracious, loving friend.
It took me a loooong time to realize what I had. I am "rather happy" he hang in there through it all.
I am a better person for it - and, I not saying that lightly!

Yes, I took the photo by the ocean shore and have digitally manipuleted it to achieve this result.
I have about twelve in this series I call "Mardigras".

Love and joy

Alicia M B Ballard StudioGaleria said...

Dear Sandy,
As I was saying to Pauline - it came from Irene, she did a great "graphic" post...
But, I did namage to make a legible copy. lol

I regard friendships as something "sacred" - yet many people are less than casual about it.

Interesting how some of us take things more to heart than others, isn't it?

Big hug

Zeekat said...

so true......so true