In The Lives of the Eminent Philosophers, Book 10, Diogenes Laertius says that Epicurus wrote this:
"Then again to Themista,"... ...."I am quite ready, if you do not come to see me, to spin thrice on my own axis and be propelled to any place that you agree upon"
VS78 says friendship is an immortal good.
..."to spin thrice on my own axis" could be seen as "to do everything in my power"...
And this points to the necessity of making effort for friendships, and could be seen as possibly enduring pain for the sake of pleasure.
And, that for the sake of "goods" (necessary goods for the sake of a happy and pleasant life) we endure what is unpleasant in the short-term for the sake of the long-term pleasures that they produce.
Considering what can get in the way of friendships, perhaps the question: "How much pain to endure for the sake of friendship" (and after moving to a new city and having to start over with making friends, and the insistence on finding "like-minded" friends, quite a task for my own situation).
How many of you find that your only friend is your spouse...or that the friends you have are lacking in depth (or lacking in "like-minded-ness")......or the unlimited (unparalleled) enjoyment of staying at home seems better than the effort of seeking new friends...or.....you have found your "tribe"?
