Choco-Chip Cookie

The single most important difference between humans and animals is higher consciousness is that as humans, we are not only self-conscious, but we are aware of the fact that we are limited by time and space. We therefore value time and we regret it when we waste it. We celebrate birth as the beginning of new life and all the possibilities that could come about through them. Such a joy also entails expectations from that newborn baby. In contrast to the joy of new life, we grieve over death, because we know that we cannot cherish the loved ones we’ve lost anymore, in this world. Time, therefore, adds colossal value to the existing relations that we enjoy.


Sandwiched between birth and death are decades, years, months, days, hours, minutes, and seconds. We spend most of this time eating, drinking, sleeping, dressing, travelling, working, etc. While all of these things can become wearisome with time, there is a gift given to us by God- to keep our hearts warm. That gift helps us to draw meaning and purpose in the little things of life. That gift is the gift of friendship. And along with true friendship comes love, empathy, and warmth. Without friendship, humans would die under the burden of monotony. Even the devil likes company and he has a lot of it. I think it was a great friend who said – “Friends are the chocolate chips in the cookie of life.” I believe so!


I thank God from the bottom of my heart that He has given me a family of friends. I enjoy some of the best friends in the world. They not only add color and happiness to my life, but they show me my flaws in a constructive way. Proverbs 27:17 says that as iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. Friends are the mirrors in life. They show you who you are, without negatively judging you. A true friend will criticize you to your face but will also have your back in your absence. A true friend is the one who honestly rejoices in your victories and sticks close through the defeats. They know every ounce of you, but they love you with every ounce they have. Through the thick thin of life, friends become a safe haven.


Joseph Scriven, when he was in the lowest valley of his life, wrote one of the most loved hymns called- What a Friend we have in Jesus. And friend, He is! The world sees Jesus as the founder of a religion called Christianity but Christians see Him through a prism. Christ is not just one thing to us. He is our all in all, He is our everything. He is our God, High Priest, Redeemer, Lover, Savior, and very importantly, a Friend. In John 15:15, our Lord very lovingly tells His disciples- “I have called you friends.” In an age when the followers would serve their condescending Rabbis, Jesus called His disciples, friends. Not only did He call them friends, but He also showed it to them, to us, and to the whole world. He died for them who knew Him and for us who did not know Him! He died for His contemporaries who saw Him, touched Him and ate with Him. He died for us who did not even exist two millennia ago. Only a friend could do that. Joseph Scriven felt that warmth reaching out to Him during the 19th century. We feel that same warmth envelop us here in our own lifetime. There are millions of people who do not know that Jesus died for them, personally. Oh how I wish that they will know about this true friend!


Jesus is a friend of friends! I’ve tasted His friendship and I have seen Him walk with me through the annals of my short lifetime. I am sure that you too have experienced some form of goodness in your life. Give yourself a break from the buzz of life and thank the true friend for His love. But, don’t just stop there! Cherish and love the friends that He sent your way, as if to say, “You can’t see me so I sent you these friends, to show you my love.”


“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
-Jesus

A Tear Stained Letter-3 Max’s Response

Dear Eric,

            Thank you for your handwritten letters. They remind me of my childhood days when we used to read the letters from our grandparents at Christmas. I am pleased to read them. I like the idea of being productive by eliminating the distractions of social media! Kudos on your progress, man! Hope you, Dana, Steven, and Trevor are all good. I’m sorry about my delayed response to your letters. We were away for an early vacation and our phones and laptops were submitted.  

            With regard to your first letter, you have many genuine questions. All of those questions do not come from mood alteration. They are in fact existential questions which are quite sobering. Let me address all those questions now:

A Tear Stained Letter – 2

Dear Max,

I thought of dropping another letter. Hope you and Rachel are good. Convey my love to the kids. What’s new? How is your business going? When we met last time, you told me that you were planning to go for a vacation in summer. How did that go? I have a few vouchers for some of the finest vacation spots. Let me know and we can plan something together with families. It has been a long time since I saw Rachel, Mark and Daisy! Dana also sends her regards and a big hug for Rachel and the kids!

A Tear Stained Letter

Dear Max,

            I hope this letter finds you in high spirits. Sorry for writing to you so late. You see, my schedule is hotch-potch. I get up, stumble through my way to the shower, wake up with a cloudy head, drive 50 miles for work, play golf in the evening, and then, I have pretty much nothing to do. Dana goes for cycling or to work out for do whatever. The kids have their own stuff. So, I resort to my teenage proclivities and indulge in partying downtown. It has created a rift between me and Dana. I miss our youth! She was a believer and I debated her out of Christianity. Ever since, she has not been the same and I must say that I miss Dana. I remember how she came as an angel when I was so distant from my Dad, who was hooked on drugs.

-COMPASSION+

It is a strange title! Isn’t it? What is meant by the minus and addition signs along with the word compassion? It is rather confusing! Has the author used it just to catch attention?