Friendship is a word that we begin to understand when we are quite young. As children, we all yearn for acceptance and to fit in with other children. The children that we bond with become our first friends. And from them, we learn how to be a friend and also how important it is to have friends. But like most things in childhood, we only begin to scratch the surface of the meaning of friendship. Anyone who has moved as a child and lost touch with friends knows that childhood friendships are not always lifelong or lasting relationships.
But the older we get, the more we discover about this word. Its meaning becomes more intricate and personal the older we grow. And at some point, we stop and realize that what we believe about friendship, its value, and meaning could fill the earth’s deepest chasm. One could hastily claim that it is the act of being a friend. But in reality, that was the meaning when we were children.
As an adult, we learn that friendship is about far more than being that perfect playmate, the one who is fun or entertaining. A true friend is that rare person who is all in for the good and the bad times in your life. A friend will wipe your tears, tell you what you need to hear, and then be prepared to duck if you disagree with the brutal honesty that you need to hear.
Then your friend will be the first person by your side as you set out to right what is wrong in your life or repair bridges that you have damaged or annihilated. You will find your friend to be the one person pointing a flashlight into the darkness that has swallowed you so that you can find your way out. Unlike the friends of childhood, grownup friends are the ones you can count on when you don’t even trust yourself to get the job done.
So no longer is friendship a simple relationship. The word is the same as when you were struggling to learn to write your own name. But the commitment is both exponentially more complex and rewarding. Friends become a part of your life. They add meaning, value, stability, love, and far more than we might ever grasp, until that awful day. Losing a friend and their friendship is like losing a piece of your heart.
But as you wipe away your tears, the ones that your friend would have wiped away for you, it all begins to become clear. Friendship is what adds the beautiful colors to the mural, that is your life. Friendship creates the music in the background of every important moment, and it provides the love in your heart that carries you through the darkest days. Friendship is a rare and beautiful gift that we share with those who are most special to us. Friendship is that bond that can overcome distance and time as you find your way through the journey that is life.
Bbbeeeaaauuutttiiifffuuulll. Friendship is also a gift of love. Some friends are better than our families. Friendship is like a fruit tree in your yard, that gives and keeps on giving and ask for nothing. It’s there when you are hungry, when you need shade from the sun, cool breeze when it’s hot and you can share its contents. It is also strong as a rock, so you have something to lean on too.
Trees help our environment in many ways. Friendship helps to improve our lives, our hearts, bodies, and soul, a good one that is. Good friends are hard to find, so if you find one, don’t cut it down as you would do to your fruit tree. If insects have invaded your fruit tree, find ways to help keep it alive. When your friendship is threatened, find ways to fix it. Both your fruit tree and your friendship took years to develop and grow. Like your fruit tree, a good friend will stay with you through insects, storms, and for all of the seasons. Be a good friend too.
This is so beautiful and so true. A real friendship, at least from my experience, is a person you are able to see only once or twice a year, but connect with via phone, e-mail or mail more often, or not, and when you do connect, pick up where you left off. A true friend is someone you’ve known for years, but your connection isn’t based on what your lives were like “back then” but what your lives are today, your values and interests and how your life is unfolding in the present. All friends are “one of a kind” and can’t be replaced by any other friend. I have friends I haven’t seen in years and probably will never see again, yet we stay in touch with birthday cards once a year. Even friends you’ve had a falling out with, or a disagreement, have graced your life and you still wish them well. I have one very special friend I’ve never met in person, don’t connect with often, or even spoken with over the phone, but consider her a close friend for life. My dear mother taught me to be my own best friend, which becomes more and more important to me as I grow older, for as we treat ourselves, we will great others. Friendship is definitely a gift from God and one to be treasured always.