I had my morning coffee on the hotel terrace. It was sunny and quite warm, but I was completely alone. Surrounded by towering chestnut trees, I felt I was among old friends. All of them are in leaf by now, but they are at different stages of growth. There is many an unopened bud still on one of the trees, which is most exposed to the weather. The first leaf on the least exposed tree on the terrace must have appeared no longer than a fortnight ago, I would guess. Looking up, I could not suppress a smile. Old friends, indeed. I have watched them at this stage of their yearly cycle for a full decade already. As I was finishing my coffee, I wondered at the asymmetry in our friendship. The sentiment is all mine, to be sure, but I would still stick to the notion. Although it lays bare the inadequacy of language, any language, when it comes to our relationship with nature, it also shows how strong that relationship can actually be. And friendship perforce goes even deeper than family ties.