True Friendship is Timeless

I traveled 21 years back in time this past weekend to a place I lived before I lived in Richmond, to the Green Mountains of Vermont, and they are now just as pristine and as unchanged as they have been for hundreds of years. Vermont is vastly unique in its timelessness. While there are pockets of “civilization” (neighborhoods, small cities, and busy streets), you can still look into the distance from many vantage points—as far as the eye can see—and spy only a dot or two of some old farmhouse peeking out between the overgrowth of foliage everywhere. I stayed with my friend, Terry, at her new home in Georgia, Vermont. Old friends and coworkers showed up for a fun book party at her house on Saturday night. Everyone was excited and friendly; none of the usual chiding about not staying in touch enough. While staring into familiar faces from over twenty years ago, it almost felt as if no time had passed. Sincere friendship is timeless, like the rolling landscape of the mountains. Once securely settled in the heart, it is always there to sustain us.