The Gift of Friendship

"Friendship is a sheltering tree."~Samuel Taylor Coleridge

One of my New Year's resolutions always seems to be "cultivate friendships". I am generally friendly with people and yet, I really felt there was always a disconnect when it came to close and meaningful friendships. Therefore, I began 2012 with the intention to focus on and enjoy friendships.

Now five months into the year 2012 and I have learned a few things about friendships, at least as they involve me. Friends have always been there. From Mankato to Duluth to Le Sueur to Minnetonka to Sioux City and now Cottage Grove...
The problem was never that they weren't there or that I didn't have any, the problem was I wasn't being a good friend. I wasn't making time to be a good friend.

These five months, I have made the time to spend with friends. I have let go and had fun and laughed and laughed and I have cried and cried. They have surrounded me with their love and prayers. They have listened to me and offered support. The have held me in their hearts and have been a tremendous source of strength. I have enjoyed reconnecting with old friends on the wonder of facebook. I have learned that cultivating strong friendships has depended on letting people be good friends, letting them in, spending time doing little and big things with them and trusting them with the things I was normally hiding from everyone. I have absolutely learned that to develop and enjoy strong and rewarding friendships, I had to be a good and trusting friend in return.

I am so blessed to have a group of people in my life I consider close friends. They are all things good. Wise, witty, eloquent and empathetic, they have been my sheltering tree. I trust them with everything I have, they are gifts that I may or may not deserve. I just pray that God will guide me and strengthen me to be the kind of friend they continue to be for me and that they deserve in return.