Being Aquarius like Scott means taking friendship seriously. Ever since I met him I have been impressed with how many friends Scott has and how far back many of those relationships go. In fact, he is still out there making new friends! We were in the pool getting relief from the heat two days ago and I watched the ease at which Scott reached out to a young man strolling by the pool and started a conversation with him that has now included several hours of conversation and a few ping pong games. Turns out the guy’s name is John, he’s from Beantown, is another software developer and is here at The Leela Hotel for a wedding. His wife who did not come works in an oncology department. We plan to meet this Bostonian later for dinner with our other friend John (a.k.a. JB) who is shown above with Scott.

JB came to see Scott in Goa and flew all the way from Seattle to be here with us. The two of them met in college and have stayed in touch more than 40 years. I have enjoyed getting to know JB and am happy that Scott has some companionship other than mine. Next week, Scott’s best friend Luca will be joining us, too. Luca is flying in from Besano de Grappa, Italy. We spent Scott ‘s 60th birthday with Luca in Italy and had a blast. Friends are cherished gold to Scott and me and we are both fortunate to have lots of them.

With facebook the new standard of modern friendship, it’s interesting to ask how many of us will keep our facebook friends for 40 years? Will the upcoming generations establish deep and lasting friendships with real time spent together? We hope so. Life is not just about making money. Making–and keeping– friends is a treasure you can bank on at times like these. We are boosted by the many friends sharing time, love, messages from home, memories with us. Cannot tell you enough how grateful to friends & family we both are.