Worth the Effort
posted in General |Recently I visited with a girlfriend (and her husband) that I have known since college. Because we live on opposite sides of the country we don’t often get to be together. It was wonderful to get caught up on family and on the happenings in each other’s lives. We reminisced a bit and shared our plans for the future. As she left I wondered when I’d get to see her again.
After spending time with her I started thinking of all the friendships I’ve had over the years and how blessed I’ve been. A smile crossed my face as I thought of friends around the US and abroad. My heart was happy as I remembered great times with girlfriends and saddened as I thought of those with whom I’ve lost contact.
As with anything of value, I am well aware that not all friendships come easily; not everyone is an immediate kindred spirit. Some friendships require extra work. They force us to look beyond the “typical” things we are attracted to in a person. (If we are honest, we will admit that initially we are attracted to people who are similar to us … people who share our beliefs, our desires, our passions.) But, the difficult friendships stretch us as we are forced to look down deeper into a person’s soul in order to connect.
I am fortunate enough to have both types of friendships. I love and treasure the times with my kindred spirits. These are the women that when we are together I feel like we’ve never been apart. Regardless of the months that have past since we were last giggling over a cup of coffee, we are always able to pick up right where we left off. And our time together is always too short.
But I’m also realizing just how thankful I am to have the other friendships too. These are women with whom I have to make a conscious effort to spend time with. It’s not that I don’t love them, but our conversations don’t flow quite as easily. We don’t always relate to the world the same way and we don’t necessarily share the same beliefs. But always, as we spend time together, I am thankful they are in my life.
I encourage you to take stock of the blessings of your friendships. Tell your kindred spirits how much you love them. Find time to get together and catch up. But, in doing so, don’t neglect the friendships that are a bit more difficult. Make room in your life for them. Allow yourself to be challenged, to look at the world a bit differently. Not only will you grow as a person, but your life will be enriched.