Friends

Tomorrow I take off for Shalom Mountain, a wonderful, magical place in the Catskill Mountains, where people grow, learn, heal, and find deep connections with each other. Ironically, I am going to the Wild Man retreat while still considering the offer of the Amazon native to live in his village in the jungle.

I feel extraordinarily blessed with friends. Shalom is a place I made many friends during my training there last year, and I am looking forward to seeing some of them again. And the community that has formed around the Sunday night gatherings warms my soul and feeds me. My life is rich with friends, lovers, support people, community. I think of how many people out there live lives very alone, maybe hoping for one person who will take away all their loneliness, and I feel lucky for the life I have found.

I often forget, and start to believe I am alone again, as was true for much of my life. At times like that, I withdraw and quickly fulfill my own prophesy. But today, at least, I remember, and I am grateful to every one of my friends for being in my life.