3 Poems on Friendship

Joseph Ranseth
Featured Author

Three pieces of prose about friendship from the book Let’s Stay Here written by author and MDI contributor Joseph Ranseth. Book can be found on Amazon Here: 

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The Tapestry 

The very things about others 

that “trigger” us, or bother us, 

are the very things we need 

to purify our souls. 

They are reflections of untruths 

we believe within ourselves. 

Seeing them as things in others 

– instead of as in ourselves – 

are proof that we have it backwards, 

that we see it upside down, 

as staring at the underside 

of a tapestry. 

And it is only when we can rise above 

– where we belong – 

by surrendering the sandbags of 

false belief, resentment, or fear, 

that we see clearly that 

those reflections were trying to show us: 

the magnificence of our true nature, 

and purify our minds, from the very things 

– the lies we believed about ourselves – 

that we chose to keep it hidden. 

The Beautiful Conflict 

Love is not afraid of conflict. 

Love will bring 

The lies 

And errors 

And offer them to the light, 

Where they can die 

The death they deserve. 

Boldly and courageously 

Will love examine 

Every story 

Every feeling 

Every thought 

And humbly surrender them 

On the altar of truth, 

Until only purity remains. 

No, love need not fear the conflict 

that arises in our relationships, 

For it is only the means 

Of surrendering the war within ourselves, 

And we achieve that sweet victory of peace 

The moment we value truth more than our shadow. 

For it is only when we see clearly 

That we finally understand 

The truth of love– 

The unthreatenable beauty of our perfection– 

That our illusions 

Attempt to obscure. 

To love 

someone 

wholeheartedly, 

unreservedly, 

willing to risk our 

own hearts 

in the process 

is one of the bravest 

things we can do 

hidden in plain sight 

– a miracle among the mundane – 

and the gate to 

the greatest reward 

and purpose of our 

existence: 

Union.