Thursday, December 16, 2010

Lucky in Friends

Today’s Reverb10 prompt is Friendship How has a friend changed you or your perspective on the world this year? Was this change gradual, or a sudden burst? (Author: Martha Mihalick)

I am in a time in my life where I don’t have an abundance of friends. I have coworkers that I am friends with, but I don’t hang out with most of them outside of work.

Growing up, I always had to have that one BEST friend. I believe that there are two types of people. There are those that love having a ton of acquaintances and people to hang out with and then there are people like me that are much happier with one special friend. I moved around quite a bit so I had a cycle of finding a good friend, becoming inseparable, moving away but promising to keep in touch, and finally, never talking to them again. I didn’t have Facebook and Myspace when I was in elementary and middle school so I lost a lot of friendships due to moving.

With every move, it became harder and harder to make friends. I have a feeling this was because I really just stopped making any effort. I got tired of mourning lost friendships over and over so I gave up in a way.

I am the kind of friend that will drop everything if someone needs me. If you call me at 2 AM because you need help? I’m there, no questions asked. If you are going through a rough time, don’t be surprised if I drop by your house with a small gift to cheer you up.

I very rarely meet people that put as much effort into maintaining friendships so very often I feel neglected and hurt. In high school I had a good friend that hurt me over and over and I let her walk all over me. She was popular and I wasn’t and she would only hang out with me when there wasn’t anyone “cooler” in the room. I wrote about the last friend that hurt me greatly and since then I have forgiven and moved on, but I will never put that much work into my friendship with her. I just can’t let myself get hurt like that again.

However, I do have one friend that continues to amaze and inspire me. She is insanely busy and one of those people that has a million and one friends and is always going to some party or get together, so I don’t get to see her as often as I would like. Even though she is busy, she still takes the time to check in with me from time to time. We email and text and keep in touch and she is someone that I know I can count on if I ever need help. She has an amazing faith that just leaves me in awe. She has this amazing positive attitude that I try to model myself after. There have been situations where I will actually think, “What would my friend do right now?” When she laughs, it is this huge, hearty laugh that always leaves me with a giant smile.

In addition to this amazing friend, I also have a husband who supports me in ways I didn’t even realize I needed. I have a mother who would give anything for me and a sister who can always make me laugh. Even though I may not be that girl who has a hundred friends, I feel I am extremely fortunate to have a few strong, close friends that will always be there for me.