Author Archives: Writer

“On Friendship” by Ayesha F. Hamid

I have had friends from every walk of life whether they be working class, academics, business owners, baby boomers, or millenials, the beautiful, the angelic, the damned, all interesting and unique in their own right.

Life by its very nature though, puts our friendships to the test because living life is, by its nature chaotic and mutable. The act of befriending another is, in itself, an effort to give support to that person, in what is sometimes a difficult journey. If life always continued quietly and serenely, like a slow stream, then it would be easy to maintain all the relationships we’ve ever made.

So, from all the different friendships I’ve experienced, I’ve come to understand what true friendship is. True friendship, like any type of real realationship, requires tenacity and faith where it would be easier to succumb to lack of care and abandon. There will always be events, people, stressors, etc, who will tempt the less tenacious to drop friends like dead weights. There will be ugly moments and unbelievable or hurtful things said. Some friends will choose to work through this rough time together and forgive. Others will give up and flee.

I am proud to say that I am not one of the less than tenacious friend. Very rarely have I given up on another human being whatever the circumstances. I have fought for friendships that often left others confused – why was I fighting for something that the other person did not necessarily care that much about. I would say that I always fight to maintain the relationships I have because, to me, there has never been a point to having friendships if they were not “true friendships.”

Though fighting for others does not always guarantee that friendships will be saved, it does show us who values us more and who values us less. When you give others a friendship of faith, love, and tenacity, it is sometimes given back tenfold, and that makes one’s efforts to be a true friend, to others, more than meaningful.

“Love on the Street” by Ayesha F. Hamid

I look up crookedly, just a bum on the street,
but I can still see the things you don’t think
I can see – the steps you take, the role you play
the stride with which you walk
makes its way deep into the recesses of my heart,
out through every tear, every drop,
the liquid filled with lore and longing,

and as long as I have eyes, which can offer
love at first sight, the greatest gift
a human soul can give, even when crouched
down on the ground, staring without a sound,
I give you the only thing I have to give – LOVE.