As we move our way deeper and longer into this world, we start to see a pattern of what remains and what is released from our lives. I have always attached merit to longevity – it is often easier to (prematurely) verbally declare eternal friendship, love and spiritual belief, but in fact only time can truly show us that what has endured in authenticity throughout the years, is perhaps what is actually true and meaningful.

Every so often, certain aspects of our lives are released from us. Perhaps it is a job, or a hobby we used to take seriously, or a place we once called home. The most thought provoking releases are always that of love and friendship. Sometimes the release is organic, a natural drifting apart through relocation or some other extenuating life circumstance but our affection for each other always remains. Other times it is intentional and dramatic perhaps derived from deep betrayal, disrespect and/ or severe boundary-crossing…. these episodes are always sad and hopefully very rare.

What about those friendships that dwindle away for all the reasons in between… perhaps one party felt used, or taken for granted. Perhaps another party felt misunderstood or judged. And as per Khalil Gibran’s musing – ‘between what is said but not meant, and what is meant but not said, love is lost.’ What do we make of love that is lost through these cracks of the unspoken, the unheard and the unseen? Do we chase for something broken for resurrection or do we let it die a natural death? Do these ambivalent endings make the whole experience futile? Certainly not.

The most beautiful quote from a film that speaks of unconditional love is that of Monseur Ibrahim, who tells his young friend Momo ‘What you give, Momo, is yours forever. What you keep is lost for all time!’ meaning that any love given to another is never wasted, no matter how it is received or un-reciprocated.

As I completed another 365 days around the sun, it became crystal clear to me that all the love I ever experienced in my life was a precious privilege to have no matter how it ends. For the relationships that ended dramatically, for the ones that ceased organically, for the ones that ebbed further away into the lost ocean of disappointment – they have all vitaminized me only for my betterment.

And for the love that remains? The loved ones who continue to honour these bonds of trust and affection in the same spirit of respect, loyalty and forgiveness throughout multiple decades of highs and lows- well for now, they are my cherished and meaningful truth.