True Friendship

Both Larry Christenson and Stephen Ambrose describe the strong friendship and respect between Lewis and Clark as being one greatest factors in the in the success of their expedition. Meriwether Lewis probably stated it best himself, when he wrote William Clark and asked him, "If therefore there is anything under those circumstances, in this enterprise, which would induce you to participate with me in it’s fatigues, it’s dangers, and it’s honors, believe me there is no man on earth with whom I would feel equal pleasure in sharing them as with yourself." Clark's reply affirmed their deep friendship, “My friend, I assure you no man lives with whom I would prefer to undertake such a trip as yourself.” (Spelling corrected.)

One of my favorite TV shows was "Due South" starring popular Canadian actors Paul Gross as Benton Fraser, a Mountie living in Chicago, and Gordon Pinsett as the ghost of his father, also a Mountie, murdered by another member of the RCMP, which is what brought Benton to Chicago in the first place. In one of the early episodes, the elder Fraser tells his son about the time his partner rescued him from the Canadian wilderness, " There's a very easy way to define friendship. A friend is someone who won't stop until he finds you and brings you home." One of the major emphasises of "Due South" was the bond of friendship Gross' character formed with both of his American cop partners during the run of the show. Jesus Christ had an ever more pointed definition of friendship, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." and then He continued, "I have called you my friends."

The point of all this is my ever-increasing belief that, in this day of e-mails, blogs, busy schedules and such, we have forgotten the true meaning of "friendship." It disappoints me when someone claims to be your friend, but is too busy to really mean it. I have always been someone who takes friendship very seriously and deeply. I still maintain my friendship and contact (although it is sometimes sporadic) with two people I grew up with, and two others who became close friends in high school. I can honestly say though, that I have maybe have maybe a half-dozen friends (other than my wife, of course) like Lewis, Clark and Benton Fraser. That bothers me, because the number is so small. My wife says I want to be everybody's best friend, but I counter that I want to be a "true friend." I want people who I consider to be friends to know that I am someone "who won't stop until I find you and bring you home." Lewis and Clark were that kind of friends. I try to be that kind of friend. The kind of friend that Irish songwriter Phil Coulter was referring to when he said:

"I can hear the songs, the stories and the laughter.
Though the years they have us scattered,
The friends we made back then
Are the ones we could rely on ever after."
"Gold and Silver Days" by Phil Coulter

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