10.12.2006

Friends

"People who bore one another should meet seldom; people who interest one another, often."
~C.S. Lewis, The Four Loves

I love C.S. Lewis. Sometimes I feel like he's my long lost brother, or perhaps my friend Peter. I feel so close to him, that on occassion I call him C.S. But seriously, I think the man is brilliant. I told my friend Ann the other day that I was pretty sure he was the modern day Paul. Naturally she retorted, "Perhaps in the circles you run with." Sometimes I think he is as beloved amongst searching Christians today as Paul was in his day.

Recently I've been reading The Four Loves, which has really made me contemplate how I interact with people. The "four loves" he discusses are: "affection", "friendship", "eros", and "charity". If I was prudent I would read the section on charity before I say anything more, but since I'm young and foolish I'll spout some of my opinions recklessly.

I really like the quote this blog starts with, and I love C.S. Lewis's definition of friendship. He makes a very marked difference between affection/need based friendship and true friendship. Friends, he says, often meet with this typical opening expression, "What? You too? I thought I was the only one." I think this is the reason that whenever I meet someone who is crazy enough to go run before the sun dawns they are my new instant best friend. This shared interest is the true bonding point of friendship.

Another favorite quote corresponds with why it is hard for some people to have true friendships. Lewis writes, "That is why those pathetic people who simply 'want friends' can never make any. The very condition of having Friends is that we should want something else besides Friends. Where the truthful answer to the question Do you see the same truth? would be 'I see nothing and I don't care about the truth; I only want a Friend,' no friendship can arise...There would be nothing for the Friendship to be about; and Friendship must be about something."

So the question becomes then, are many of our friendships true friendships or are they of some other nature? Often times our friendships are affection/need based. A "friendship" occurs if that person meets certain needs of yours, or you meet needs of theirs. This occurs more readily in "friendships" between the sexes and is often why these types of relationships struggle. Because they are more driven off of a give and take basis, they become more prone to hurt, anger, and ultimately destruction since the relationship is not based off of a shared interest.

I'm not sure what this all means. Certainly I shouldn't align myself with only runners. Or computer nerds. Or guys who like to talk about girls. But I think it does mean that I shouldn't just pursue friendships for the sake of friendships. It does me no good to fake interest in OU football, in attempts to make a friend. That person will see through me quicker than a Texas touchdown, much like I will see through them if they cannot even eek out a 12 minute mile. I think, though, it makes me evaluate my friendships that might possibly be need/affection based. If we are just using each other to meet some unfulfilled need, there might be a deeper issue that should be addressed. But then, there is this fourth love called charity....

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ah, Blake-o. Very good blog, and that´s not just coming from my own vanity at being mentioned.

This might black-ball me from some friends, but I don´t think I´ve read a CS Lewis book. I just don´t like the British writing style. But now I want to read this book. That is quite a feat.

I guess one thing this blog made me think about is what a miracle friendship is... when people come together in loyalty and love and fun and laughter and crap times, too, even when they´re different. Seeing the same truth... one of the greatest gifts of Christian community. It can bring together people from different parts of the world geographically or politically or philosophically.

So I´ve been thinking about what our friendship could be about. Perhaps "disagreeing." :) Not in a bad way, but in our classic "iron sharpening iron" way. :) Great post, my friend.

Anonymous said...

Great blog! It was great seeing you at Laura's wedding the other night. It made me realize how blessed I've been by friendships I made throughout college, but also made me a little sad that I've lost contact with so many people.

Anonymous said...

Swoop!

Lewis is indeed the man, Blackwell. If I didn't think it would solidify Ann's dislike of the man, I would chastise her harshly for having never read a single(!) one of his books.

Nice thoughts, man. I miss hanging out with you. In fact, I'm gonna go ahead and call it: Pow-wow on Thanksgiving Break!!! (I explained pow-wows to some college girls the other day--at least the parts of pow-wows that are suitable for mixed company--and they thought it was hilarious... Good times. See you in month!)

Liz said...

Hahah, well now I'm glad we taught you about the option... you never know when that might come in handy for making a new friend! Perhaps that you were willing to tolerate our talking about it signals that our friendships are more in the realm of appreciative love.
Also, when I went to get the book so I could finish it, they had the actual recordings of him giving the lecture. Yep, awesome.