After his close friend’s death, a grieving Andrew Sullivan delved into the nature of friendship. While society celebrates romantic love, it sadly give little attention to platonic relationships. “In almost every regard, friendship delivers what love promises but fails to provide,” he wrote. “The contrast between the two are, in fact, many, and largely damning to love’s reputation. Where love is swift, for example, friendship is slow. Love comes quickly, as the song has it, but friendship ripens with time. If love is at its most perfect in its infancy, friendship is most treasured as the years go by.”
National Friendship Day occurs on the first Sunday of August, so it seems a good time to celebrate the importance of our beloved friends.
For August, please share with the IJ a six-word story of friendship. Please make it a story with a beginning, middle and end, and not just six adjectives — make us laugh or cry or at the very least feel something.
If you want your story to run in the IJ, please:
• Write “Six-word story” in the subject line
• Send one story. Just one
• Include your full name and Marin town in the body of the email (not in the subject line)
• Write your short story in the body of the email (not in the subject line or in an attachment)
• Use proper punctuation (check the dictionary, please)
• Use sentence style (no capitalization unless a proper name)
• Use correct spelling (check the dictionary, please)
• It does not need to rhyme and ideally shouldn’t
Send your story to lifestyles@marinij.com by Aug. 20 with “Six-Word Story” in the subject line. Then look for your story in the Aug. 31 lifestyles section and online.
Last month we asked IJ readers to share their short tales on their most memorable vacation. Here’s what they had to say.
Home alone. Family gone camping. Peace. — Susan Savage, Novato
Cruising Croatia: dreams of Adriatic blue. — Elaine C. Johnson, Greenbrae
Family of six, 11 countries. Amazing. — Joan Lubamersky, Larkspur
Road trip. Car sick dog. Staycation. — Steve Gershik, San Rafael
The majestic white continent of Antarctica. — Irene Tabet, Mill Valley
Four kids, cross-country in Winnebago. — Claire Miller, San Rafael
Elephant snapped tent pole. Canvas held. — Mary Beth Wheeler, Novato
Making memories with many Italian relatives. — Gloria Wohlschlaeger, Sausalito
Coast-to-coast walk across England. Wainwright’s Way. — Martin Russell, Mill Valley
Crossing Grand Canyon, hiking four days. — Kay Edwards, Novato
Family bicycling alongside the Colorado River. — Steven Friedman, San Rafael
Seeing our son perform in Portugal. — Sam Fleeger, Marin City
1982, backpacked with my two sons. — Marilyn Bagshaw, Santa Venetia
Climbing Banner Peak on burro trip. — Diane Cokely, San Anselmo
2016 Rio Olympics with fans cheering. — Karen Verrico, Mill Valley
Paris, Louvre, Notre Dame — pre-fire. Thankful. — Mark Sachs, San Rafael
Visited beautiful Vietnam 50 years later. — J.M. Derda, Bel Marin Keys
Missed trail; cold night awaiting dawn. — Eve Riebe, Mill Valley
Wondrous slot canyon, scorching heat, Gatorade. — Mary, Dave, Jack and Molly Rosenthal, San Rafael
Cute bear cub; suddenly there’s Mom. — James Cortese, Novato
Saw the Hagia Sofia at last. — Judith Pomeroy, Novato
Everest at sunrise, trekking in Nepal. — Mary Quinlan, San Rafael
Mexico. Yellow-taped hotel room door: “Contaminacion!” — Doreen Malin, Ross
Auto trip, carbon monoxide, hospital visit. — Roberta Keller, Mill Valley
Hiked in. Made love. Hiked out. — Roland Crotts, San Anselmo
Filmed lemurs in Madagascar. Students clapped. — Betty Goerke, Mill Valley
9/11/01, Galway, Ireland; No TV news. — Ruby Unger, Mill Valley
Sea Ranch 2017 before son died. — Michael Keran, Tiburon
Galapagos: I saw through Darwin’s eyes. — Cheryl Howard, San Rafael
A backpacking memory: wet, muddy, cold. — Kathy Barrass, San Rafael
Key Largo camping inundated by mosquitoes. — David Berger, San Rafael
Tahiti, beautiful sands, ocean, bad company. — Katherine Ware, Belvedere
Driving alone from Germany to Greece. — Anabelle Wasserman, San Rafael
Himalayas embracing Victorian houseboat. Unforgettable Kashmir. — Susan Mines, Terra Linda
Island bliss, gone amiss: Honeymoon hurricane. — Dana Tuttle, Mill Valley
Mountain backpacking: silence, lakes, alpenglow, peace. — Ron Skellenger, Woodacre
Beach rental had nightly cockroach raves. — Janice Kohnhorst, San Rafael
Croatia: Lakes, islands, mopeds, cerulean seas. — Cristy Pollak, Novato
Lost and found: Daughter on Trenitalia. — Louise Wright, Stinson Beach
Playful gray whales bumping the Zodiac. — Susan MacKenzie, Kentfield
Maui 2021, therapy for the soul. — David Leipsic, San Rafael
Hiking accident; 12 days Pakistani hospital. — Dawn Steiner, Fairfax
Back to the motherland with dad. — Caley Guida, Ross
Rafted Grand Canyon rapids. Challenge met. — Diane Ryken, Novato
Connection canceled. Slept in Chicago airport. — Marcia Naomi Berger, San Rafael
Antarctica camping with seals, penguins, whales. — Linda Futrell, Fairfax
American cyclist catapults into Bangkok canal. — Kristi Beale, San Rafael
Italian relatives serving feast on patio. — Gloria Bussa Wohlschlaeger, Sausalito
South Africa, need I say more? — Helene Jaffe, Greenbrae
Eating maguro sushi on the Shinkansen. — Ted Fehlhaber, San Anselmo
Venetian flood. Wading out, suitcases overhead. — Susan Scarth, Novato
Giants baseball. Posey, Crawford, crowds, me. — Ilene Taekman, San Rafael
Summited Mount Kilimanjaro, exhausted and exhilarated. — Richard Schneider, San Rafael
Burning Man 2001: A desert odyssey. — Dean Thomas, San Rafael
Istanbul, Hotel Empress Zoe, uniquely charming. — Gailya Magdalena, Lucas Valley
Surfing the Danube, sunning in history. — John Lind, San Rafael
Alaska, two summers, the last frontier. — Ekhard and Nancy Mahl, San Rafael
The Greek Islands are unforgettably beautiful. — Angelo Capozzi, Tiburon
With daughters, welcoming singing Cuban tour. — Esther Cherk, Mill Valley
Bali’s artful culture, only our dream. — Dart Cherk, Mill Valley
Ten scramble toward Lassen Peak sunrise. — Steve Smith, San Anselmo
Seven countries, six weeks — Europe ’81. — Charlotte Winters, Corte Madera
Cruise ship around Alaska, fantastic voyage. — Nancy Reck, Mill Valley
All trips are memorable some way. — Karin Granados, San Rafael
Everyone, Europe, Africa, China, Peru, Bali. — Marty Komitopoulos, San Rafael
Marble conversations with Michelangelo Firenze summer. — Ruth Britton, Greenbrae
Repelling in Rwenzori mountains in Uganda. — Tim Biddle, San Rafael
Rafting the Grand Canyon. Amazing, life-changing. — Marna Kramer, San Anselmo
25th anniversary: Mauritius, Madagascar. Experienced lemurs. — Kenn Kovitz, Novato
Carmel. Banning leaf blowers since 1975. — Mary Geving, Woodacre
Camino de Santiago with my sister, transformative. — Ramona Maria Ansolabehere, Novato
Arrived Miami, passport home, delayed Caymans. — Shirley Gottesman, Greenbrae
Grand Canyon rim to rim to rim. — Tim Biddle, San Rafael
Grieving Dad’s passing, my backpack comforted. — Lauren Scott Swalberg, San Anselmo
Seeing Beartooths, bison, badger in Yellowstone. — Madeline Kellner, Novato
Four girls: pensions, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Neuschwanstein, Salzburg. — Nancy Greenfield, Larkspur
Enchanting Norway. Family, photo opportunities everywhere. — Sharon Eide, Novato
Arches soar triumphantly; arches fall flat. — Suzanne Whelan, San Rafael
Hiking Siena to Viterbo, Via Francigena. — Timothy Warden, San Rafael
Winthrop, Maine. Big time childhood vacations. — Dennis Brouillet, Novato
Cobras dancing to flutes near me. — Joyce Salvador, San Anselmo
Amtrak rocked and rolled, no sleep. — Pam Berkon, Novato
Cabo with son and four granddaughters. — Tobi Rubin, San Rafael
Kenya, Tanzania with my three children. — Lucy MacSwain, San Rafael
Survived Oregon dunes and whitewater rafting. — Diane Bouchard, Novato
North of Fairbanks, a gold dredge. — William Nicholson, Ross
Two weeks in Tuscany with family. — Pat Derenzo, San Rafael
Cruising the Mediterranean Sea; glowing contentment. — Carla Chapman, Terra Linda
Floating, warm river, inside a cave. — Cathy Fox, Strawberry
Sipping mai tais on Waikiki beach. — Pamela Lunstead, Novato
Phuket 12/31/99 millennium dancing until dawn. — Terence Cox, San Anselmo
Kids puked, dog bit, car died. — Potter Wickware, Mill Valley
Halfway around globe, but no wind. — Eric Wilcox, Kentfield
NY to CA by car, amazing! — Marjorie Hilton, Novato
Polar bears swim toward beached whale. — Terry Loos Campbell, San Rafael
The nightmare ended at the hospital. — Lisa M Consani, San Anselmo
Don’t stand in the canoe. Splash! — Steve O’Keefe, Novato
Botswana safari elephant goring; I survived. — Holly Hadlock, Mill Valley
Galapagos three times, the best place. — Barbara Coler, Fairfax
Family avoiding hurricane vacationing in Kauai. — Heidi Mayer, Novato
Driving through Sicily, tasting the past. — Stella Cosenza, Fairfax
Turquoise water, whispering pines — missing Tahoe. — Barbara Cummings, San Rafael
Lost my luggage. Daughters fought. Vacation? — Jim Cohen, Mill Valley
Rented Sprinter, tiny fun, not again. — Stan Burford, San Rafael
Up, up and away, now where? — Steve Fabes, Sausalito
Seeing the pyramids, Sphinx, Petra; fantastic. — Marian Mon, Novato
Barge trip in France was the best. — Barbara Leopold, Greenbrae
Watching African elephants at a waterhole. — Sue Beittel, San Rafael
Experienced aurora through eyeballs, not phone. — Rochelle Newman, San Anselmo
One hour with gorillas in Rwanda. — Kim Bromley, San Rafael
Remember sweetheart we’ll always have Paris. — Mario Gianetti, San Rafael
Chaco nightfall, alone, running on fumes. — Wendy Engel, Novato
Summiting Mount Whitney, Labor Day 1949. — Marty Barry, Novato
Biking Haleakala. Engaged by the end. — Scott Kempf, Novato
Vacation in Maine, impossible to explain. — Michael C. Vogel, Mill Valley
Botswana; lions hunting, eating, flirting, mating. — Jennifer Stevens, San Rafael
Family Peruvian wedding. Machu Picchu spectacular. — Barbara A. Begley, Mill Valley
Sought relaxation, sunshine; survived Hurricane Odile. — Joanne Greene, Novato
Toledo, Spain, where I met Glenn. — Peggy Koorhan, San Rafael
Lahaina 1974, first mai tai: wow. — Hank Simmonds, Kentfield
Europe, backpacking with my sons, 1982. — Marilyn Bagshaw, Santa Venetia
Our Myanmar trip when COVID began. — Francis Parnell, Ross
Approaching Everest base camp was incredible. — Frank Ridley, San Rafael
Goodies never say die home, beach. — Victoria Worch, Novato
Tropical ocean; coral, turtles, eels, rays. — David Curtis, Novato
