"Optima dies... prima fugit."

The line above was written by Virgil and means roughly, "the best days are the first to flee." This phrase appears on the title page of Willa Cather's "My Antonia." It also seems to fit Cather's theme. The book is about a man's childhood friend, a Bohemian immigrant by the name of Antonia. Growing up during their youth, life ultimately takes them in different directions, but the friendship they have remains solid. After reuniting after a number of years apart, Jim Burden reminisces with his friend...

"Do you know, Antonia, since I've been away, I think of you more often than of anyone else in this part of the world. I'd have liked to have you for a sweetheart, or a wife, or my mother or my sister - anything that a woman can be to a man. The idea of you is a part of my mind; you influence my likes and dislikes, all my tastes, hundreds of times when I don't realize it. You really are a part of me."

She replies:

"How can it be like that, when you know so many people, and when I've disappointed you so? Ain't it wonderful, Jim, how much people can mean to each other? I'm so glad we had each other when we were little. I can't wait till my little girl's old enough to tell her about all the things we used to do. You'll always remember me when you think about old times, won't you? And I guess everybody thinks about old times, even the happiest people."

I've been fortunate enough in my life to have some friendships similar to this. That no matter the time and distance placed in between, nothing can diminish those memories (some of my "best days") and the beauty of lasting friendship.