Erich

Eric, but with a silent “H”.

Erich, far from silent.

That H stands for something.

It stands for hope.

The hope he gives me that I could really have a good friend.

The hope that “maybe not all men”.

It stands for hugs.

The hugs I have been deprived of for nearly five whole years.

The hugs I am determined to get in order to finally close the space.

It stands for high.

How high my spirits can be lifted if he just tells me something nice.

How high he can get, like, holy shit high. Like, he can definitely outsmoke me.

It stands for help.

The help he has given me when nobody else could.

The help I would give him, without question in a heartbeat.

Erich stands for everything.

Everything I’ve wanted in a friend.

Everything that was there five years ago, just in silence.

The “H” in Erich is silent, but it is still unbelievably there.