cherish the true.

a friend
is a wellspring
of understanding.
a catch basin for grimy
little secrets that can
scarcely be voiced.
a friend holds the tissue
box when you splinter.
accepts confession, and yet
won't demand details,
regardless of perceived
juiciness, too intimate to confide.
a friend is never too
cross to commiserate.
never too just to
pull up a chair.
never so certain
about an outcome
as to insist you've made
a mistake.
a friend is never
so unclear about the definition
of friendship
as to straddle its boundaries.

-ellen hopkins