My Friend Didn’t Need Me to Be Interesting

Dear Delyara, I had coffee with a friend this week and realized halfway through that I wasn’t performing. I wasn’t trying to be especially funny, useful, bright, wise, or emotionally polished. I was just there — tired, ordinary, honest — and it was enough. I can’t explain how rare that still feels to me. Friendship like that doesn’t just comfort me. It changes my understanding of what I’m allowed to be around other people.