Thought for the Week: Friendship

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I know I don't need to tell you all this, but friendship is a beautiful thing.  Over the years, I have been blessed by friendships in numerous varieties.  Some for a season, some for a lifetime, some serious, and some totally random.  Regardless of the type, I find myself immeasurably blessed by the differences in each.

This weekend, I had the chance to have what one relative termed a "social weekend."  I bounced from baby shower to baby shower, to dinner parties, to girls lunches, and to super bowl viewings.  While these events afforded different types and levels of interaction, I always left with a bounce in my step and a feeling of contentment and love for my friends.  

Quick snippets of conversation between oohing and ahhing over a soft lamb or ruffled onesie provided the perfect check-in moments with new friends.  Chatting at a dinner party with a wonderful cousin (Hi, V!) left me feeling blessed, challenged, and inspired to read more books and blogs (and wishing NYC was closer...)  A "quick" phone call to one of my oldest and dearest friends allowed me to celebrate some of the little (and some of the BIG) changes happening in her life.  Each interaction was different and varied, but the common themes were there: friendship, celebration, and being interested in the life, thoughts, and opinions of someone other than yourself.  

I think that's the secret to great friendships.  It's not in the proximity, the number of times you talk each week, or the things you have in common.  It's more about the willingness to invest in someone else.  It's about celebrating babies, work promotions, and new houses.  But it's also about listening (and asking) about the more mundane things in life - those things we all face and sometimes just need to laugh about so we don't scream.  

So here is an open thank you to all of those wonderful friends.  Thank you for listening, asking, laughing, crying, and spending time on the celebrations and on the mundane.  Your friendship has blessed me more than words can express.  I'm one lucky lady and hope you all know how loved you are.  

xo,