The Company of Friends

It is a great privilege to grow old in the company of friends –  like-minded individuals who have spent their childhood and youth in the same  environment as yourself and have shared similar life experiences.

Of course, they need not be friends who agree with you about  everything. You should be able to discuss and even argue with them about  subjects ranging from what Barack Obama and Manmohan Singh should do when they  finally retire – to why Mahinda’s hair is still jet black while Ranil’s is  getting greyer and greyer – to the sartorial elegance of Prince Charles and the  clothes worn by Camilla Parker-Bowles.

The most important criterion is that those with whom you share  the evening of your life should be friends with whom you can share a beer and a  chat – folk with whom you can enjoy the privilege of expressing contradictory  opinions in congenial company.

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