"To be a friend, one must show themselves friendly..."
Proverbs 18:24
Life. Is. Busy. With all the hustle and the bustle of our lives these days, that statement is...well, an UNDER statement. From the second our feet hit the floor in the morning, we've got thousands of things running across our minds that we have to accomplish before we walk/run out the door. Take a shower. Take your vitamins. Brush & Floss. Iron, because you didn't do it the night before. Feed the cat. Turn off the coffee pot. Wait...did you even turn it on?
Nonstop, right? And that's just the morning routine! In this day and time, life is full of "go" with barely a second to stop. I don't know about you, but the hardest thing for me to maintain, in this life full of "busy", is contact with friends. Friendship has always been an interesting concept for me. I've never had a lot of trouble with meeting people and being friendly. But making, growing and keeping friendships? An introvert's struggle. My "draw into myself " personality kept me from being as social as some of my peer group tends to be. While everyone else is out having a good time at a lounge, I'm curled up in bed with a good book. Don't get me wrong! Occasionally, I venture out and have a good time. Although, I cannot tell a lie. An even better time for me is playing a rousing round of The Sims while I catch up on episodes of "The Following", all while scarfing down a massive bag of pita chips.
But that doesn't always work, now does it? I'm coming to find that being an introvert isn't always an acceptable excuse. In a previous entry, I hinted towards how important it was to get out and make sure that you're active and social, but this time, I want to talk about something a little different.
I just recently found out that the mother of one of my childhood friends passed away from an illness that she'd been suffering from for awhile. I found out about five days after she passed and immediately made contact with the friend. The good news is my friend doing well with her mother's transition, but the bad news? It'd been YEARS since I'd heard her voice. When I say we were thicker than thieves, I mean we were the closest. Some of my best memories involve her in some way and to NOT have spoken to her in years? It sent the worst feeling through me. I expressed how I felt to her through tears and her calling me a "cry baby" (lol) and she said something wonderful to me. "No matter what, I'll always consider you one of my closest friends." THAT was true friendship. She never showed anger when I wouldn't call for months and she had to chase ME down and when she finally caught up with me, there was always so much love in her voice that I KNEW I didn't deserve her friendship. But she loved me in spite of myself. She will always know my heart.
I said all that to say that even with her wonderful friendship, it will always be my job to show the same love that she shows to me. Even if I still may flub it up from time to time! The Word says that if we are to be true friends to someone, we have to first show ourselves as such. That simply means that we have to emulate the characteristics of a "friend" before someone can even consider us as such. Reaching out to a friend with a simple phone call or a visit, even in the midst of a busy schedule, even when it seems like there isn't enough time in the day will always mean more than any text message or Facebook message!
I cannot express how important I'm discovering it is to continue to the lines of communication with your friends. Things change with the blink of an eye. What better way to show yourself a "friend" by being there as support with things do change?
On this journey of singleness and self discovery, don't forget to love one another...
Life it up!
But that doesn't always work, now does it? I'm coming to find that being an introvert isn't always an acceptable excuse. In a previous entry, I hinted towards how important it was to get out and make sure that you're active and social, but this time, I want to talk about something a little different.
I just recently found out that the mother of one of my childhood friends passed away from an illness that she'd been suffering from for awhile. I found out about five days after she passed and immediately made contact with the friend. The good news is my friend doing well with her mother's transition, but the bad news? It'd been YEARS since I'd heard her voice. When I say we were thicker than thieves, I mean we were the closest. Some of my best memories involve her in some way and to NOT have spoken to her in years? It sent the worst feeling through me. I expressed how I felt to her through tears and her calling me a "cry baby" (lol) and she said something wonderful to me. "No matter what, I'll always consider you one of my closest friends." THAT was true friendship. She never showed anger when I wouldn't call for months and she had to chase ME down and when she finally caught up with me, there was always so much love in her voice that I KNEW I didn't deserve her friendship. But she loved me in spite of myself. She will always know my heart.
I said all that to say that even with her wonderful friendship, it will always be my job to show the same love that she shows to me. Even if I still may flub it up from time to time! The Word says that if we are to be true friends to someone, we have to first show ourselves as such. That simply means that we have to emulate the characteristics of a "friend" before someone can even consider us as such. Reaching out to a friend with a simple phone call or a visit, even in the midst of a busy schedule, even when it seems like there isn't enough time in the day will always mean more than any text message or Facebook message!
I cannot express how important I'm discovering it is to continue to the lines of communication with your friends. Things change with the blink of an eye. What better way to show yourself a "friend" by being there as support with things do change?
On this journey of singleness and self discovery, don't forget to love one another...
Life it up!
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