During my recent stay in Switzerland, I tried to get some postcards of Wolhusen, the village I grew up in. Not much luck, which is not surprising, because I would not call it a particularly photogenic place. But I did find some contemplative cards at the local stationery shop, with nice pictures of birds, flowers, nature, and wise words. One of them reads: "Das Besondere. Ein Freund versteht dich, weil er dich mag. Aber ein Freund mag dich auch dann, wenn er dich nicht versteht".
Roughly translated, it means: a friend understands you because he likes you - but a friend likes you even when he does not understand you.
I would put it even stronger: to understand someone is not a prerequisite for loving them. Nor is it a consequence of loving someone.
I am going on, and wonder why this topic seems to be a thread in my musings - right from childhood.
