Originally written – circa 2002
I grew up in the Deep South where folks move slow and talk funny. Louisiana was the place, where the weather was as hot and sticky as the crawfish bisque that dribbled down your chin. Not knowing any better, I went to the local university. LSU. Home of the purple and gold fighting tigers, jungle juice parties and fruit flies to boot. Never will it all be anything.
I met a hardheaded woman there and we became fast friends. (In more ways than one, I s’pose). We hooked up with a couple of fellas from Nawlins who enlightened us on many things. We were so green. It was groovy man. Turned out the guys liked others more like them. Ah well, we formed a pod, our little group of friends and study pals.
We didn’t sit around and get rusty listening to silence. We rode the Peace Train in the storm all the way to our Destiny and threw back bottles of brew ’til the morning broke. We got a little bruised, but it made us stronger… strong as a rock, you might say. We imagined many things, but never doubted our friendship. That’s why we stand together and look at both sides now. We drank lots of coffee and buzzed through the Raygun years swatting newts with our papers. Leder Hosen ja! Rock on meine freund! I look forward to many more birthdays with you.
It’s been many years since college and me and my old friend have even graduated twice. My friend succeeded in life and is busy healing no necks and dealing in the Girl Scout cookie trade. Me? Well, I’m still floating through life looking for my purpose. But, my friend never loses faith in me.
Times change and friends drift in and out of our lives, but she is the one constant in my little universe. When I was busy making memories in Texas and she in Illinois, it was almost like she was still with me. We both weathered some floods, then eventually took off for California. That woman is so L.A., so Cosmopolitan, while I wiped out on the waves of life near Ventura Boulevard. I dabbled with criminals for a while – collecting the evidence of their crimes, but that didn’t work out and now I’m free. I even found me a soul mate. Good riddance to all those bad boys and spiritually draining jobs.
We are still renegades, blossoming and growing as we age though not as green anymore. I still have not found what I’m looking for in life, except of course for my soul mate which is all the purpose I need. Being with him is like walking on clouds every day. And that’s saying something these days with the old bones.
I’ll do okay as long as I have my friend to pick me up from time to time.