The Ship of Friendship

A voyaging ship was wrecked during a storm at sea and only two of the men on it were able to swim to a
small, desert like island.
The two survivors who have been a good friends, not knowing what else to do, agreed that they had no
other recourse but to pray to God. However, to find out whose prayer was more powerful, they agreed to
divide the territory between them and stay on opposite sides of the island.
The first thing they prayed for was food. The next morning, the first man saw a fruit-bearing tree on his
side of the land, and he was able to eat its fruit. The other mans parcel of land remained barren.
After a week, the first man was lonely and he decided to pray for a wife. The next day, another ship was
wrecked, and the only survivor was a woman who swam to his side of the land. On the other side of the
island, there was nothing.
Soon the first man prayed for a house, clothes, more food. The next day, like magic, all of these were given
to him. However, the second man still had nothing.
Finally, the first man prayed for a ship, so that he and his wife could leave the island. In the morning, he
found a ship docked at his side of the island. The first man boarded the ship with his wife and decided to
leave the second man on the island.
He considered the other man unworthy to receive Gods blessings, since none of his prayers had been
answered.
As the ship was about to leave, the first man heard a voice from heaven booming, Why are you leaving
your companion on the island?
My blessings are mine alone, since I was the one who prayed for them, the first man answered. His
prayers were all unanswered and so he does not deserve anything.
You are mistaken! the voice rebuked him. He had only one prayer, which I answered. If not for that, you
would not have received any of my blessings.
Tell me, the first man asked the voice, What did he pray for that I should owe him anything?
He prayed that all your prayers be answered
Moral: For all we know, our blessings are not the fruits of our prayers alone, but those of another praying
for us (Congregational Prayer). Value your friends, dont leave your loved ones behind.

A True Friend
In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high
esteem. One day one fellow met the great philosopher and said, "Do
you know what I just heard about your friend?". "Hold on a minute,"
Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a
little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test.". "Triple filter?". "That's
right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my friend, it
might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going
to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test. The first filter is Truth.
Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is
true?" "No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and...". "All
right," said Socrates. "So you don't know if it's true or not. Now let's
try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to
tell me about my friend something good?" . "No, on the contrary...".
"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about
him, but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test
though, because there's one filter left: the filter of Usefulness. Is
what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"
"No, not really." "Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell
me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at
all?"
Lesson:
Well we can always participate in loose talks to curb our boredom.
But when it comes to you friends its not worth it. Always avoid
talking behind the back about your near and dear friends.
________________________________

POEM
TRUE FRIENDS
Best friends stick together till the end,
They are like a straight line that will not bend.
They trust each other forever,
No matter if you're apart you are together.
They can be your hero and save the day,

They will never leave your side they are here to stay.
They help you up when you fall,
Your true friends are best of all.

Bonds Of Friendship
From the day that I first knew you,
Your heart was pure and kind;
Your smile was sweet and innocent,
Your wit was well refined.
The sparkle in your eyes was keen,
Your friendship fast and real;
Soft words were your virtue,
And humor your appeal.
We grew as friends together,
We laughed and shared our dreams;
Along the way crush or two,
Went unrevealed, it seems.
As years rolled on, our paths were split,
Our roads went separate ways;
We each pursued our interests,
That occupied our days.
We soon forgot our youthful bliss,
Of tender carefree years;
We didn't talk or keep in touch,
Throughout life's pain and tears.
Then my darkest hour came,
And tried me to my core;
To save my heart from ruin,
I closed and locked the door.
Then out of every nowhere,
With precise directed cue;
An old familiar smile,
Came slowly into view.

Although much time was gone,

And the die of fate long cast;
It was as if we hadn't missed,
A second of the past.
You listened with attentive care,
And reassured my mind;
That loving hearts are still alive,
With purpose and design.
Deep inside I've locked way,
Emotions yet untold;
As time goes on, and bonds grow strong,
They will all unfold.
So thank you, friend, for taking time,
To demonstrate your love;
It's yet another blessing that,
I'm undeserving of.
PROVERBS
Value friendship for what there is in it,
not for what can be gotten out of it.
H. Clay Trumbull
One friend in a lifetime is much; two are many; three are hardly possible.
Henry Adams
Friendship is the soul's heaven.
A. Bronson Alcott
A friend is, as it were, a second self.
Cicero
Be gracious to all men, but choose the best to be your friends.
Isocrates
Friendship needs no words--it is solitude delivered from the anguish of loneliness.
Dag Hammarskjold
A friend is one who dislikes the same people you dislike.
Unknown

Sincerity, truth, faithfulness, come into the very essence of friendship.

William Ellery
There is no surer bond of friendship than an identity of community of ideas and tastes.
Cicero
We should behave to our friends as we would wish our friends behave to us.
Aristotle
Friendship, like phosphorus, shines brightest when all around is dark.
Proverb
Friends are like melons. You may try fifty before you find a good one.
Claude Mermet
We must listen to our friends, especially when they are not saying much, and be
attentive to all expressions of their secret person.
Ignace Lepp
Have friends. 'Tis a second existence.
Baltasar Gracian
Difference of opinion was never, with me, a motive of separation from a friend.
Thomas Jefferson
Reprove your friends in secret, praise them openly.
Publilius Syrus
"Stay" is a charming word in a friend's vocabulary.
Louisa May Alcott
Pleasant words win many friends, and an affable manner makes acquaintance easy.
Ecclesiasticus 6:5, New English Bible
I keep my friends as misers do their treasure, because, of all the things granted us by
wisdom, none is greater or better than friendship.
Pietro Aretino
You will make more friends in a week by getting yourself interested in other people than
you can in a year by trying to get people interested in you.
Arnold Bennett
Life has no blessing like a prudent friend.
Euripides

It is the friends that you can call at 4 a.m. that matter.

Marlene Dietrich
Let friendship creep gently to a height; if it rush to it, it may soon run itself out of breath.
Thomas Fuller
True friendship's laws are by this rule express'd.
Welcome the coming, speed the parting guest.
Alexander Pope
In prosperity it is very easy to find a friend; in adversity, nothing is so difficult.
Epictetus
If a man does not make new acquaintances as he passes through life, he will soon find
himself alone. A man should keep his friendships in constant repair.
Samuel Johnson
Wishing to be friends is quick work,
but friendship is a slow ripening fruit.
Aristotle
Friendship makes prosperity more brilliant,
and lightens adversity by dividing and sharing it.
Cicero
Hold a true friend with both your hands.
Nigerian Proverb
Tell me your friends, and I'll tell you who you are.
Assyrian Proverb
The proper office of a friend is to side with you when you are in the wrong. Nearly
anybody will side with you when you are in the right.
Mark Twain
Go often to the house of thy friend,
for weeds choke the unused path.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
SLOGAN ON FRIENDSHIP
Friendship doubles your joys, and divides your sorrows.
There are big ships and small ships. But the best ship of all is friendship.

A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.
Side by side or miles apart, dear friends are always close to the heart.
True friendship is when two friends can walk in opposite directions, yet remain side by
side.
Who finds a faithful friend, finds a treasure.
Your friend is the person who knows all about you, and still likes you.
Only your real friends tell you when your face is dirty.
A friend will bail you out of jail a best friend will be sitting next to you saying that was
great!
Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for awhile and leave
footprints on our hearts. And we are never, ever the same.
Friends are the most important ingredient in this recipe of life.
A road to a friends house is never long.
A friend knows the song in my heart and sings it to me when my memory fails.
Friends never make assumptions about you. They never expect a reason to go out with
you. In fact friends only expect you to be you.
A friend is someone who is there for you when she would rather be somewhere else.
Friends are Gods way of taking care of us.
When a friend is in trouble, dont annoy him by asking if there is anything you can do.
Think up something appropriate and do it.
Friends are like snowflakes, none of them are the same!
A true friend sticks with you through thick and thin no matter what.
Your friends are what will matter in the end.