On Friendship

I've read a number of memoirs over the past year, including those of Joan Didion and Elizabeth McCracken. The latest one to inspire me is Ann Patchett's amazing tribute to her friendship with the late Lucy Grealy. Every page was gorgeous and heartbreaking, but this quote in particular has stuck with me:

"Even when Lucy was devastated or difficult, she was the person I knew best in the world, the person I was the most comfortable with. Whenever I saw her, I felt like I had been living in another country, doing moderately well in another language, and then she showed up speaking English and suddenly I could speak with all the complexity and nuance that I hadn't even realized was gone. With Lucy I was a native speaker."

I had the opportunity to see some old friends this summer, and I had this exact feeling. Thank you, Ann Patchett for describing this so perfectly.

P.S. Erin, I miss you.