Usually when I write a 'meanwhile' article it's inspired by an event; something I saw or experienced in some way. Sometimes the words are right there, and with seemingly little effort from me they just fall across the computer screen like rain drops on a window. Other times I have to search for every sentence and piece together each paragraph creating the finished article like an airfix kit.

I think this 'meanwhile' will be one of those shattered China bowls. I have so much stuff I want to write, but I'm sitting here, nearly motionless in the glare of the computer screen like a deer caught in the headlights of a car.

This past weekend a close friend of mine expressed a feeling to me that he had "no soul." It was part of a much bigger conversation, that in itself was just a small part of a far bigger issue. His life has recently been turned upside-down though the break-up of his eight year marriage. A personal trauma the like of which I feel I almost have no understanding of.

Watching my friend go through this period is his life has been utterly frustrating for me. I feel like I am simply unable to provide the kind of help he needs, and while I am of course 'there for him' I am feeling like just 'being there' is in actual fact one step short of where I actually need to be.

It's like standing on the shore watching a ship sink and not having anyway to get help for the helpless.

--- Article Notes ---

Time of death : 01:27
I tried to approach this subject on several occasions. This is the furthest I managed to get. My considerations when writing were of course my friends privacy, but also the worry that the end result might seem very negative at a time when keeping my friends spirits up was hard enough. I decided to shelf the piece after these brief few paragraphs because I was simply not able to see the article going anywhere helpful. It is however a subject that I would like to approach again, but perhaps when it harsh reality is a little less raw and perspective might enable me to write something with a better balance.