What is friendship?
What, exactly, is a friend?
Dictionary.com defines friend in the following ways:
-a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.
-a person who gives assistance; patron; supporter.
-a person who is on good terms with another; a person who is not hostile:
-a member of the same nation, party, etc.
Cerebral definitions. How does a friend show himself to be true?A friend is one who calls you at midnight, unable to sleep, wanting to talk about the mysteries of life.
A friend is one who flies across the country or across the world to be there for your wedding because they know you don't need them there, but they want to be there.
A friend is one whom, no matter how long it has been since you have spoken, speaks freely with you, enjoying the moments you do have together.
A friend is one who forgives, despite pain, and moves on, grateful for what you have now, strengthened by the strains that now lie behind you both.
Losing people has always been difficult for me. Whether the reason is distance, differences, hurts- it matters not. I still believe that somehow, friendships were meant to be forever. God created a man and woman in the beginning who did not have to die. They sinned, and now mankind does die, but we go on to eternity after death. Why, then, do we separate?
Humans fall, fail, and inflict greater pain in others than we ever intend. Even so, can we remain? Can we maintain lifelong relationships?
Idealistic, yes. Impossible? That remains to be seen.
I'm glad to see you blogging!
ReplyDelete"Can we maintain lifelong relationships?" Abby, I can testify with a resounding yes they can!
ReplyDeleteMy friendships with women really didn't begin until college. Growing up, my family moved so many times. It was not uncommon for me to attend 2 or 3 schools in a given school year. There are a couple of friends from childhood that have found me over the years, but our relationships are very fragmented. They were before Christ.
The friends I made in college have proven to be the ones I have remained close with over the years. Your Mom and I go back 40 years and you see how we are. We just pick up where we left off each time we talk.
In my lifetime, I've "accumulated" hundreds of friends. Some came into my life for a season and then were gone. But the added to who I am.
Then there's the closer circle of friends, like those friends from the early years of GBC. Those bonds run deep. We raised our families together, buried parents and married off children. There's a richness, no, I think more like a comfort found in those friendships. Our roots run deep into each others lives. We're intertwined like the roots of the trees in the forest. They strengthen, fortify and protect one another. The kind you can call in the middle of the night.
And then there's the amazing friends that you will experience with maybe only a handful of other women, if even that. The Kindred Spirit type friend. The ones you can dream with, share the deepest of thoughts and feelings. The kind that you can sit next to for hours in total silence and feel like you've been nurtured. She's the friend that will rebuke you when you need it and be there to pick up the pieces when you've failed yet again.
I'm sorry...I wrote a blog post here in my comment. But your inaugural post touched me.
I love you, Abby. Always have, always will. Welcome to "bloggy world."
Friendship is an amazing gift.