This past weekend I had the opportunity to spend some time with friends I’ve known literally my whole life. I don’t have to explain how good it is to get together with friends in general, but I wanted to take a moment to talk about how precious friendships are anyway—particularly those which have lasted the longest.
The best friendships are the kind that even when months (or longer!) have gone by, the moment you get together again, or pick up the phone and talk, your camaraderie is instantly reestablished. It’s as if you’ve talked every day and can laugh over the things you know they’ll laugh over, or commiserate in just the way you need. There’s a connection there, a comfortable-ness that even time can’t break.
Whether a person lives in a city or a small town, friendships still need time. How do you nurture something without spending time on it? It’s so easy to let the days go by filled with activities, but many things that demand our time these days don’t bring much community. Especially these days with online social networking. That offers a certain kind of community, one I’m grateful for since writing can be lonely, but lately I’m reminded that even a long, heartfelt exchange of emails cannot compare with face-to-face time spent in the company of someone you’ve known so long there isn’t a thing you need to explain. You just know how the other person is, and very likely why, just as they know you.
One of my oldest friends and I have committed to getting together every other week. Life sometimes gets in the way, but we both realize the importance of being intentional about getting together. Those heartfelt but vague promises of getting together “soon” too often don’t materialize, so my friend and I have avoided all that by setting up a regular appointment. For me, it’s like therapy. I get to talk to someone who knows just about everything about me and loves me anyway. 🙂
As a child I was a girl scout and we sang a song with a line something like this: Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.
So this week I’m celebrating friends! Go out and hug one of yours this week.
Hi Maureen,
I am sorry yesterday my computer would not let me open this. Friends are very important whether you are new friends or you have been friends for a long time that friendship is just as important. What A Friend We Have In JESUS, can’t get any better that that. I have friends that i went to grade school together and we still keep in touch with each other not often, but we still do. There is something to say about your true friends they just know when we need to talk to each other.
Maureen, i had a place underneath my chin, i had a biopsy done, i was really worried about it so many of my family members have has some form of cancer and my daughter about a year ago had two kinds of skin cancer, but praise the LORD it wasn’t cancer.
God bless you.
Norma
I’m so glad it wasn’t cancer, Norma! I’m sure the whole experience (and the waiting to find out one way or the other) was more than worrisome, especially with the family connection. I’m guessing your faith must have been a huge comfort. Whenever I face something that seems bigger than I can handle, I know God’s trying to teach me something – trusting, remembering Who is in control.
I’m grateful for who God made you to be, and that He obviously has more plans for you around here!