Lifting each other up.

From the Kosalasamyutta on diligence:

The Buddha said: On one occasion, the mendicant Ananda approached me, paid homage to me, sat down to one side, and said: "Venerable sir, this is half of the holy life, that is, good friendship, good companionship, good comradeship."

When this was said, I told the mendicant Ananda: "Not so, Ananda! Not so! This is the entire holy life Ananda, that is, good friendship, good companionship, good comradeship. When a mendicant has a good friend, a good companion, a good comrade, it is to be expected that he will develop and cultivate the noble eightfold path."

There is a journey that we are on, a pilgrimage to the center of it all. It is a great unfolding, an interweaving, and the connections that we make along that journey are important.

The relationships that we have along the way inspire us, pick us up, remind us of why we are here.
It is not about becoming something that we are not,
but reminding us of the person
that we already see
in ourselves.
And being true to that.

Thank you good friend. Comrades indeed!