The mountain stream goes down one direction until it reaches a barrier, then the water splashes, then the stream overflows and soon finds a new path to allow it to flow further down the mountain.
Your metaphor has me smiling. i guess we started being friends because we both had similar experiences in that sense two streams with obstacles converged. For that i am very fortunate. Real frienship sometimes is not quite how we expect it to develop. i think we have to be receptive to what life gives and not what we want to get. This has been my experience. We do not always know what is best for us. But when we are guided by hidden forces that are helping us we find it is not us that is directing our lives but rather God's grace showing us what is best for us.
Jitendra