Fellow spiritual director and owner of a cat named "Leftovers," Rev. Mary Earle has a beautiful article over at explorefaith.org today. It's an exploration (appropriately) of what it means to be a soul friend, or anam cara. Since that's so close to my heart as a spiritual director, I thought I'd share a little bit of the article, and then link to the rest so that you can enjoy Rev. Earle's lucid, deft writing.
A person without a soul friend is like a body without a head.
—attributed to St. Brigid of Kildare
Indeed we each need one special friend, who may be called a friend of the soul. We must open our souls completely to this friend, hiding nothing and revealing everything. And we must allow this friend to assess and judge what he sees.
—Pelagius
The Letters of Pelagius: Celtic Soul Friend
In 1994, I found myself on pilgrimage in south Wales just after Easter. Though it was April, and 
as a Texan I am used to April being warm; the time in Wales was chilly and wet. Daffodils did dot the countryside, fields of yellow shining through the rain. Yet I kept wishing for a little warmth, a little sun.
The warmth came in the form of fellow pilgrims I met in Wales, from open hearts and kind faces. Together, we visited ancient sacred wells and churches where the faithful have been baptized since the 5th and 6th centuries. We worshiped in community and we reflected on the life of faith as a pilgrimage, a daily walking with one another and with Jesus.
Read the rest of this article here.