Give Thanks

To a certain degree, I often experience the below reflection in my marriage as well as in my friendships with a few individuals.

"A friend is more than a therapist or a confessor, even though a friend can sometimes heal us and offer us God's forgiveness.

A friend is that other person with whom we can share our solitude, our silence, and our prayer. A friend is that other person with whom we can look at a tree and say, 'Isn't that beautiful,' or sit on the beach and silently watch the sun disappear under the horizon. With a friend we don't have to say or do something special. With a friend we can be still and know that God is there with both of us."

[Taken from Henri Nouwen, "Sharing Our Solitude", in Bread for the Journey (New York: HarperOne, 1997), on March 23.]