Friends

Photo from Microsoft Online clipart
The friendship relationship is so unique and precious. The friends we have come in all shapes and sizes and for all types of purposes. I have a friend to hike with and a friend that was a classmate in elementary school that I’ve known for years. There are friends that are casual acquaintances and others that will be there for you in the wee hours of the morning when you need a shoulder to cry on.

“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or thine own were; any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee." – John Donne (1572-1631)

Some friends come into our lives for only short periods of time while others are there for a lifetime. They are the ones we exchange photos with from our weddings and births of our children. A valued friendship is one that is nurtured through all the ups and downs of life and they are the one you keep in touch with when you move to another state.

How do you develop friendships? Does the relationship just happen and evolve on its own? There is time and energy involved in developing a lasting friendship. It’s an equal exchange of mutual interests and spending time with each other. You could strike up a lasting friendship the moment you meet, personalities click and from that point on you’re inseparable. There is a special love between friends unlike the love in other relationships. I can talk to my friend and they seem to know what I’m saying without having to explain everything. Likewise, I can tell by their voice if there’s a problem. We just seem to know each other in that special way.

It’s nice to have a buddy to hang out with when you’re tinkering on cars, going hunting or catching a round of golf. They’re into the same things as you with your energies in sync. These friends are as close and as comfortable with you as a family member without having to impress. If months and years go by since I last spoke with my friend, we can pick up where we left off when we talk as if no time had passed at all.

“Someday, after we have mastered the winds, the waves,
the tide and gravity, we shall harness for God the energies
of love.
Then, for the second time in the history of the world, man
will have discovered fire."
--------------------- Pierre Teilhard De Chardin (1881-1955)

Lasting friendships – lasting love!

From the kitchen table - Pat
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