Tag Archives: friendship

Saying Goodbye

One hour ago I packed up my housemate and leaned through the driver’s open window to tease her. Then, I stepped back. She spooled up her iPod, and her stereo’s bass thumped. We grinned. We had crammed her windows with socks and running shoes and an old clock, the folded flag from her father’s funeral. All the detritusContinue reading “Saying Goodbye”

A Prayer for a Friend

I met her when I was 19 years old. I’d been recommended for a job at the campus writing center, and she was the first staff member to greet me. It took me a minute to absorb this. Jana has cerebral palsy and relies on a wheelchair to get around. I was blinded by theContinue reading “A Prayer for a Friend”

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

Growing up Mormon, I was taught early on to choose my friends and acquaintances carefully. Notice the effect they have on you, I was told. Notice how they treat other people. Consider how you feel around them. Scripture verses were passed out along with crayons and animal crackers, and one of the first things I learnedContinue reading “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors”

When Memory Overtakes You

Where I was born. Where my grandparents’ ashes are scattered to a wind that whips up the dirt in fallow fields, sending great clouds of dust into the air. Home. A friend of mine just got back from her first trip to the Philippines in 16 years. She visited her elementary school, her childhood home,Continue reading “When Memory Overtakes You”

All Forward From Here

So a few weeks ago I went on a road trip with my Big Friendly Gay (BFG) buddy. Yup, 3,000 miles down to Tucson, Arizona and back. We’re both very organized and exacting, both insufferable know-it-all types. I’m the kind of person who rises at precisely 6am, fixes my coffee at 6:15, starts writing atContinue reading “All Forward From Here”