This Issue

Sep/Oct 2009

Gilgamesh and Enkidu, Frodo and Samwise, Bella and Jacob, Hamlet and Horatio, and that trio from Hogwarts: Harry, Hermione, and Ron. Friends, best buds, BFF.

In this issue you'll discover the special friendship between felines and humans, including the one between poet Helena Clare Pittman and her cat Crombie. Of course, we need our BHFs (best human friends), too. High-school student Chris bonds with retirees Leona and Jack during a volunteer stint at "The SVDP Pantry," while Tess Langan journeys to Costa Rica for a summer of community service and friendship with the "Ticos." Friendship is a bond that transcends species, age barriers, and cultures.

While friends care deeply about each other, sometimes that involves challenge and confrontation. As Henry David Thoreau wrote, "It takes two to speak the truth,--one to speak, and another to hear." Sometimes this causes friendships to fray, making way for new friendships that, in time, grow deep taproots. That crafty Greek philosopher Socrates offered this advice, "Be slow to fall into friendship, but when thou art in, continue firm and constant." After all, "What is a friend?" asks Aristotle, but "a single soul in two bodies." Those old philosophers knew a thing or two after all.

When you're done reading the following selections from CICADA®, go to www.cicadamag.com/submitwork and answer the Call for Creative Endeavors. Your Challenge theme: Friendship!