"Friends"

The soft white light of the computer screen flickers on a cold winter morning, the little clock at the bottom of the screen says 3:02 am. I know that I should be sleeping, but my mind is going a thousand miles an hour. So, here I sit with a cup of hot chocolate at my side waiting for my server to connect me with the internet.

My mind starts to drift back in time, a time that my thoughts , hopes, and dreams could not be shared with anyone. Those are the lonely times in my life, a time that was filled with nights of tossing and turning, and not being able to let my mind rest. How could it, a mind filled with so many things that had to be able to get out, but how, and to share with whom. A time when all of the deep down joys, and sorrows had to be kept inside.

These are the times before I stumbled across the fast growing group of people I would be able to call my friends. People who I will never know face to face, but who have become as close, no closer than my friends in the so called real world. There is no voice behind the words I see come across my screen. I gaze at the screen waiting for a friend to appear as if by magic, for me and only me to see.

Can this be real, or is this still a dream that my mind has given me to deal with all of my thoughts that are running wild in it. No, this has to be real. For, the words that slowly appear on my screen are words that I want to see, words that I need to see, and yes, words that I do see, so how can this not be real.

A world where people do not see color, wealth, or any of the other things in the real world that do not let us see the "real person". I see the familiar names appear on my screen, and it is like I have come home to a place where I have lived all my life. They welcome you in with open arms, and a smile. So, once again how can this not be real.

I have been lucky enough to find these friends. Friends that I share laughs with, and yes even tears with. A friend that I am able to share my deepest thoughts with, this has to be real. I have been able to listen to them, and help them with their good times, as well as their bad times. We share the times when they are sick, the times when they are happy, and the times when they too need a shoulder to lean on.

We share things that we are unable to share with anyone else. For, we know that they will not laugh at us, or tell us that we are being foolish. They will listen to what we need to say, for they are a friend. A friend who will allow us to lean on them, and not ask us for anything back in return. It is funny, we are able to share our hopes and dreams with these people. People without a face, without a body, and without a voice.

But, we are able to hear in their words what a real friend is. You see, a real friend is a person who can be there for you in the good times, as well as the bad. They know what to say at times, and yes they may not know what to say either. However; they are there for us, even if it is to just let us say what is trapped in our minds, and hearts. They allow us to be able to go on with everyday things, that without them we may not be able to do.

My mind snaps back to the screen, and with a few clicks of the keyboard I am taken to my friends. Yes it is 3 am, but they are still there waiting for me to join them. The screen fills up with all the welcomes, and it makes me smile. To know that there really is a person out there that I am so very lucky to be able to call a friend.

If, I was able to save one moment in time, it would be the moment, that I met you, my friends, and for that I will be forever grateful. :)

written by ^dreamer2