Two friends who have known each other for nearly 40 years talk about what kept them close. They started with prayer and intention, stayed present without performing for each other, and built a group that has lasted four decades.
You.
It'S been a long, long, incredible friendship with you and I'm just so happy to be here right now. And I was just thinking and reflecting on your visit the first time we connected on a. We knew each other, but the first time we really connected and what you said as you walked up the stairs to the apartment where I was staying, what you said you did was you had a prayer and that you really rooted with all of your heart that what was going to come out of our connecting would be something beautiful. And, and that's my first reflection on the way the last close to 40 years or whatever it's been have been. And it seems like you bring that prayerfulness or that intention to what you do and have at least as long as I've known you. And it's still going on today. Do you see it that way too?
It's kind of humbling to have it be presented that way. And it does seem like the longing to have real contact and to be able to talk about whatever my experience is or your experience is is like holy ground. And to be able to love each other and share all the vulnerabilities through all the years is as good as it gets. And that prayer has certainly been fulfilled. And it's hard to imagine any other part of my life being any better.
Friendship?
Yeah, I mean the friendship that we've had and the friendship that our group that spawned 40 years ago has represented the cornerstone of what I would call real faith or trust, which is not only do we believe in each other, but we can be in any state or any emotional condition and still take great interest in how we're doing. And I think the redefinition of friendship itself to include perpetual interest in the core experience that's going on has been the foundation for love relationship. It's been a criteria that's been brought into teachers that we've gone to. Are they interested in what our actual experience is or are they just primarily interested in us having beliefs about the nature of life and the importance of being able to listen to our authentic experience as being part of the teachings.
And remember the single minded focus, the almost unlimited time and energy put into communicating, hanging out, talking about whatever we were experiencing in a way that you seem to bring to it at that time. That again, I noticed over the years is not diminished.
I think my first love is that is I get to be where I am, I don't have to perform. You get to be where you are, you don't have to perform. And all we have to do is just share where we are. It just seems like it's common sense, but it doesn't seem like as we look at the world, it is common sense. And yet we're so blessed in a way to have a group of friends where it's just presumed, well, what else would we do?
What else would we do?
Well, we watch the Lakers a little bit Tiger woods and have a little bit of fun, but really, I think there's that and there's hopefully doing a little bit of good in the world and looking to see other people that are doing good in the world to see what they have to offer us and take care of our basic life, our health.
Thank you for your friendship.
Thank you for yours.
