Well, at least it felt that way.

I’ll share a watered-down version of one of my experiences, but the other you’ll have to ask me personally.

One of my experiences comes from when I was but a wee lad of 5 or 6 years. One bright sunny day in my Denver metro-area neighborhood, I wandered out of my subdivision and was standing at a corner waiting to cross the street. Wanting to go to Conoco and get myself some delectable goodies, I was trapped waiting for the busy traffic to pass—nearly half a mile from my home.

For a kid that young, being half a mile away from home can seem almost as far away as a well-known performer is from Center Stage.

And that’s far.

So while waiting for the light to change, a Jeep, with three U.S. soldiers inside, pulled up next to me and offered me a ride back home. Safety and security is what these three people brought me that day.

Now, in my 24th year of life, I have yet again lucked out with people similar to those soldiers.
Friends.

We all have them. I think we all have at least one person in our lives that affects us for good. A person who can pick us up when down, offer a laugh when sad, steer us right when we do wrong. Friends directly contribute to whether we sink or swim in this life.

And big “nerd-alert” to all you gamers: X-Box and Halo don’t count as anything but a shield from sociality.

I’m grateful for the friends who help me “swim” as those soldiers did so long ago. Even my riff-raff-rehabbing friends bring a lot to the table for me. I know I can trust them and count on them.

But sometimes it gets difficult to notice everything our friends do for us, doesn’t it? I think in my case, I get so wrapped up in everything I have going on that I don’t really take time to see how everyone affects me. Or how they help me. Or how I can help them.

Aristotle once said, “In poverty and other misfortunes of life, true friends are a sure refuge. The young they keep out of mischief; to the old they are a comfort and aid in their weakness, and those in the prime of life they incite to noble deeds.”

Perhaps the key to having the friendships noted by Aristotle is by being the friends he talks about.

If we ever feel like life is leaving us by our lonesome, we ought to think back to those words of Aristotle. Seeking to be a friend to someone else who is down, who needs a laugh or who might need a little nudge to keep things on the right track. After all, we can’t expect to receive those things if we aren’t willing to offer them in return.

And maybe we should let our friends know what they mean to us a little more often. Whether my friends are giving me a laugh-induced aneurism on Tuesday and Thursday nights or helping me learn what appropriation laws entail, I only hope to be able to pass to others what they give me.

OK, maybe not the aneurism.