Thanks to Friends

Two or three days, at best. 
That's all I can manage.
Then I break down in tears again.

A word, a song, an unfamiliar face ...
I never know what's going to open the gates,
rip the dam apart.

A few precious friends 
check on me regularly
and pray for me.

An even more precious
much smaller number
call, text, message me
and we talk for hours.

They know their names.
I hope they know that I know their names,
and that their hearts are golden - 
lovely to me.

When I desperately needed to talk
to someone yesterday,
I got to talk to my girls via Skype.
How I've missed them!

Then one of those precious few called,
and we talked for an hour,
about everything and nothing.
I felt so much better after talking with you.
Thank you.

Then another of those precious few messaged,
and we 'talked' like that for three hours,
about things that matter and things
that don't, to anyone else.
I felt so much better after talking with you, too.
Thank you.

People don't know what to say, 
and that's okay.
I don't know that I would, either.

Another friend I don't see or talk with anymore, 
though I wish I could,
reminded me a couple of months ago 
of an old cartoon
I had shared with her years ago.

Mildly comforting, in its own way.
Bluebird, I miss you.
Chicken, I find you disturbingly interesting.
Friend, I miss you ...
... and find you disturbingly interesting,
as well.