"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." A.Holmes

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Friendship Hits the Spot


Long time friends, the Rolands (left) tour with us and "a good time was had by all"!

" I find friendship to be like wine, raw when new, ripened with age, the true old man's milk and restorative cordial." Thomas Jefferson

Many years ago we made the acquaintance of our neighbors. The neighbors and our neighbors' children became friends with us and our children. After almost more than 2 decades, several moves, and trials and tribulations for both families, we are all still friends. In fact, we are very good friends, as are our children. The Rolands' daughter is counted by our daughter as her best friend. The daughters were in each others' weddings. The daughters are very important to each other as are the parents to us. The Rolands' son recently went out of his way , a long distance, to help our oldest son who is going through a very difficult time. ( Thank-you James)The children now grown are considered friends to us and we hope vice versa. We care about them, they matter.

The amazing and special things about our friendship are really indescribable. Anyone looking in on our friendship would wonder...what holds the friendship together? We are really two very, very different couples. We do not share a whole lot of common interests. We live very different style lives......one couple in a waterfront apartment (beautiful) and not at all rural in any sense of the word unless observing Canadian geese counts!The other couple very involved in a rural living(us). We have different hobbies and interests.....yet we count them among our dearest friends. They cry with us, rejoice with us, pray with and for us.....I often wonder how we deserve them as friends and am thankful for them!

We have some other friends we also consider very, very dear..and if I do not get around to writing about them I hope they know who they are! We do not take our friends for granted and are so appreciative to God who has graced us with these friends. As we grow older (not too old yet!!!) we value our friends more and realize they are far too special and precious to take for granted.

Over the years our friends have been there for us when I am not sure I would have been as good a friend as they. Time, energy and emotion were invested in us, only because we are friends. We did nothing to deserve this......although our friendship has never required a life sacrificed for it I am reminded of this quote from John 15:13 " Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends." In so many ways though, the giving of themselves is close to the love John is talking about...the love of Jesus who DID lay down His life, unappreciated, but He did it because of love.

On a lighter note..it is so much fun to get together with people you have a history with. We just plain laugh a lot. Old stories are recalled. We also are sad when we hear about sad things in other friends' lives..we catch up on special events. We can get together with true friends after a separation of months or years and pick up where we left off. Now THAT is friendship.

" I no doubt deserved my enemies, but I don't believe I deserved my friends." Walt Whitman

"Friends are the bacon bits in the salad bowl of life." Pizza Place Sign

call a friend, have a cup of coffee with him / her, and laugh....it just hits the spot! Kathy B.

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