Friendship is not dangerous

Words are never complete. Because our lives are never finished. They trace a trail through our thoughts, scratch a stroke in our mind. I like to present my questions, my spins, questions about what life evokes in me. In reply, in new words and stories, answers rolling from my heart, from my daydreams, from my experiences, from my flashes of love for the people. I find myself in a stream brightly positive, like a glow that gives us a glimpse of the vast humanity, makes us hope for a peaceful world.

I hope my questions don't get too complicated. For a good part I have learned to be (to do) that way, I think, through what is called the critical school. That's how I got it during my school years: don't take anything for granted, think about it.

Socrates was my first real teacher. He taught me that questioning things can be quite dangerous. Socrates lived in the fifth century BC. But his message is very topical. He was given the death penalty. He had to drink the poisoned cup, to completely empty it, to death. He did get a chance to say one last word. It turned into a beautiful page-long farewell speech in which he explained that his way of questioning had never intended to spoil the youth. Because that was the reason for his condemnation: teaching the young, teaching his students to think, would destroy society. But Socrates did not call upon the youth to revolt. He taught them to think. Apparently thinking is dangerous for society.

I was sixteen when I read Socrates. It was actually Plato who wrote down his words in his book The Dialogues. The discovery of these pearls of literature has shaped me for life. I call it friendship. For Socrates teaches us to ask questions of each other. It's like a walk, he said. Walking through life together, looking at each other, in the eyes. Looking for happiness together. People are fortune seekers, Plato says.

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But Socrates did not call upon the youth to revolt. He taught them to think. Apparently thinking is dangerous for society.

You are my friend forever. I'll never let you go. In all weathers, I stand by you. If you need me, I'll be there. If you're having a hard time, I'll be with you. If you're in danger, I'll protect you.

Friendship is looking for answers together and never letting it go. It is a source of longing for happiness, a companionship. An alley that is ahead of us, for the world, for the future and also for yesterday. It gives people a positive outlook, is present in everyone. It heals calluses and sadness, conjures up a smile and much more.

Life is for people who seek love and hope, for beautiful, often lonely hearts that long for sparkles of encouragement, for riddles that unravel one step closer to the point of light that makes us embrace life and share it endlessly with those around us .

Go, my friend, and all your friends with you. Go, my friend, make your way through your life. Enjoy your days. People are beautiful, they smile at you. People are sweet, they touch your heart. Go, my friend, believe in your life.

by Thierry Limpens