January 30, 2006

Full of friends

This weekend I acquired some best friends. The regularity and periodicity with which I have been doing so seems to have taken the sparkle out of this worthy exercise to my friends who hear me recount it. Nevertheless, for me, each best friend is the bestest friend. And I am as excited about the newest best friend as I remain about the older ones. So what do I look for when I go about acquiring a best friend?

Would it be the touch of energy and vivacity flowing through my friend to me, physically or spiritually, which would help me decide on a best friend? Would I value clarity above all- shunning all those with cloudy looks? Would it be the crowded shimmery mass of all desirable virtues bunched up or would one redeeming aspect be enough to compensate for any apparent or hidden flaws? Would it the sight of a gaudy flashy gay bauble or the quiet understated elegance of a classic beauty? Would it be the smooth contours of one well-honed and well polished or the rough individual edges of a one who can live with my edges, which help me decide? Would it be the twinkling tones or the flashing anger? The hard glittering glisten or the softer sheen?


The appearance of a best friend for me would be utterly unique- and suitably shabby. Who would complement me in my various moods, not detract, would not overwhelm me- not clash violently with my rags, my un-made face, my blowsy hair. Who would be the perfect accessory, not hog all the attention. Would sing lyrics when called upon to do so, yet not scream with an in your face attitude. Would have as many shades and hues as my moods- turquoise, red, emerald, sunny yellows and the enduring purifying peaceful all-encompassing white.

Talking of such a friend, would size matter? I would say not. I'd rather have a tiny solitaire which touches me than a crowded pricey arrangement which may leave me cold. And yes, size and colour are of no consequence, it is clarity I treasure in a friend. No wonder diamonds are a girl's best friend! :)

While on the topic of my friends, a comment on a post by the proposer of happier women led to some reflection on my relationship with my friends. While they consider me strong and personally powerful, there are times when I fail miserably to deal with my problems. At such times I find myself isolated in the midst of friends. To illustrate this asymmetry, I have chosen the most symmetrical of metres- a rictameter! Am not confident of the syllable count so its the thought which counts. Here goes:

With you
All emotions I share -
your joys I celebrate, in your plans I collaborate,
within me our words adumbrate resonate reverberate-
always through your moods, I reach in, participate- ponder,
deliberate. Your enemies I denigrate, and thoroughly berate.
Yet, when its my I grief I share, you dissipate enervate
I wonder why I bare
with you


5 comments:

Pallavi said...

Its so difficult to find good friends.. and yeah its a treasure to spend some momets with someone who gels with you..

Nice thought there.. and good to know that you got some good friends :)

Anonymous said...

Maybe its your apparent strength that makes them feel that you dont need any support...that you can always be on ur own...
Though we all need that warm reassurance every now and then.

Priyamvada_K said...

Dear Shankari,
Thanks for pointing me to this blog. I can relate very much to cherishing each friend (no matter how many there are) for their uniqueness. But true, if we tell this story too often, some people think it detracts from the value of a friendship. Hardly.

It takes a true blue Aquarian to make and cherish friendships, and value them as some of life's finest gifts. Here's from one Aquarian to another :)

Priya.

Shankari said...

Thanks my friends for being so understanding! For me, true blue aquarian that I am, friends mean the world. The amount of time I spend in making friends and cherishing them is serious!

But a *clarification* here: When I spoke of 'acquiring' best friends I meant I bought diamonds! :))

Shankari said...

Thanx Max, you are very kind my new friend!

My attempt at a rictameter has failed though as was very sweetly pointed out by Rajendra Pradhan whom I had PMed. He told me that the syllable count of my 'poem' which was 2, 6, 14, 15, 14, 18, 16,6,2 against the required 2,4,6,8,10,8,6,4,2! :)