Today I did some work in the garden, mostly hauling mulch, manure, sawdust from where it was piled for communal use to where we needed it in the garden.  I used a large, single-wheel barrow, and couldn’t help but think of “The Red Wheelbarrow,” a beautiful, short poem by William Carlos Williams.

Unless one thinks of rust as shade of red, my wheelbarrow is not red. I think it may have been green originally, but you can no longer tell. But it is still sturdy, and much does depend on it. 

As I trekked back and forth between those piles of mulch, manure and sawdust, it occurred to me that good friends are like wheelbarrows. You only need one good one that is dependably ready to help with the burdens you must bear, but it that burden is heavy, it can be hard to get the wheelbarrow rolling. Once you are on your way, you need to push them along and keep them steady, otherwise they will flip, and you’ll need to pick up everything yourself.

What do you think? Does the analogy hold up?