Friends ...

The people who give of themselves in order to help -- their time, their goods (even when it costs them money), a sense of caring -- that would be my definition of "friend". I've always been an autonomous kind of person. When I was a kid, my lifestyle didn't really allow for close friends; plus, during times when I wasn't thrown in with a bunch of people, I really valued my solitude. Later, as a teen and young adult, I probably took my friends for granted. I'd like, if I could, to reach back across the years and miles and tell them "thank you". Today I know I'm very fortunate because I have true friends.