A friend came visiting....

A friend from my previous employer came visiting. He has hardly warmed the seat when he started asking me all sort of questions about my current job. Yes, all sort ! I felt intimidated enough to say quiet abruptly, "Who sent you to come and talk to me like this?" He was taken aback, and after adjusting his seat replied, "No one. I am just curious and concern!"

"Concern? with what?" I was annoyed with his patronizing style.

He looked at me, and rested his eyes on mine for a good 45 seconds without blinking. If not for his smiling face, I would have felt like being challenged to a staring duel. But his smile was genuine and his eyes soft, even moist with tears held back. I realized then I was being hard on him. I must have taken out my frustration of my present state onto him, unintentionally - just like siblings do.

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There are many types of friends. And I know he belongs to the first type.

1. Friends forever, whatever, whenever = true friendship out of love and respect.

2. Friends for favours = whenever they appear you can be quite sure there are something they want from you. It can be to borrow your scooter or to leave their children behind with your baby sitter.

3. Friends chipsmore = come and go as they please, their presence suit only them and never you.

4. Friends for laughter = They treat you as their clown and entertainer. They come whenever they need a good laugh.

5. Friends for a ladder = This type knows they can step on you or your platform to achieve what they want. You are their stepping stones.

6. Friends backstabber = Adoii, this type can kill you softly softly you never knew when the poison comes from. This type of friends are your worst enemy....carefull!

7. Friends cyber = (added from Mummy Rizq's comment!) These friends are real, at the same time not yet real.

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I apologised for being so harsh with my words and invited him down to a cafe. Once outside of the office set-up we were more relax. Office chairs of power ( or lack of it ), desks of decision, and meeting rooms reminded us of politics, suspicion and bloating ego. Removed from all of those, we become truely two simple people trusting and enjoying each other's company.

"How are your children?" He asked.

Our conversation shifted to more personal things. And I was reminded once again of how lucky I am to still have friends of the first type.

Thank you for visiting!

Next time, we will meet at a movie with popcorns and a fizzy drink in our hands!