"Walk Beside Me, Be my Friend"
by Deannalynn Arzola
 

"Beneath a tender, fresh, cloudy sky, Montevideo unrolls it's beaches-charming city where everything implies happiness-and a spiritless happiness... At 5 p.m., we fly over Rio and getting off the plane, I am welcomed by this close, humid air-the consistency of cotton wool... at the same time, shrill and multicolored parrots and a peacock with a discordant voice,"
Albert Camus
American Journals  (Journeaux de Voyage)
August 21, 1946

This passage, by Camus was written 67 years ago, today. He had recently embarked on an amazing journey, from his home in Paris to the United State and then on to South America. He wrote when the fancy struck him. He was obviously suffering from the stress of travel, by land, air and sea, ill, and homesick. In his writings, he is sardonic, candid, and raw. At the same time, he is eloquently descriptive of his surroundings. Many a literary critic has opined the real mystery behind le Journeaux. I am not a critic, I am a fan, and I find this book to be a clear window to the the soul of a very dark and surreptitious artist.
My favorite book by Camus is "The Stranger". Camus himself, appears to be the protagonist in a story about a man who doesn't even try to reconcile why he has no heart, no soul, no conscience. 
His personal journals seem to make empirical his duplicitous psyche. He reminds me allot of Feodor Dostoevsky. Crime and Punishment was most definitely a reflection of the author's own histories. Write what you know...
Camus, however dark, is a truly eloquent teller of beauty. "Blessed are the hearts that bend, for they will never be broken."  "In the depth of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer." "Your successes and happiness are forgiven, only if you consent to share them."
And, then, of course, the duplicitous nature of this Scorpio, as Dostoevsky is; "To be happy, we must not be too concerned with others." "You know what charm is: a way of getting the answer yes without ever having to ask the question." (sic)
Last night, I lay awake all night reading American Journals. It was such a beautiful gift to literally read the thoughts of such an author as Albert Camus. Learning, investigating, trying to understand on this level is so enjoyable and enlightening, it takes my mind, body and soul to another plane. It's a true mental vacation. It was necessary for me to take this trip.
Once one has returned from this pleasing and mood altering an experience, you almost feel renewed and having solved a little mystery, you want to share all of this information, immediately and perpetually. You have to feel quite blessed to have someone with which to bounce these things off of. 
While you can and most definitely should learn from others and as it is almost our pledged duty to share the knowledge we accrue,  surely life's greatest blessings lie in the people who simply understand each others excitement in the process. And what a beautiful process it is.
Perhaps Mr. Camus said it best:
"Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend."