Celebrating Friendship

Today, I pause to celebrate the great unsung heroes of everyday life. Friends. This is an area where have been particularly blessed so I speak from the perspective of having had my own life enriched by the many people who have shared my journey. True and honest friends can help to make the worst of times more bearable, while increasing the enjoyment of the better chapters in life as well. Now, I actually include some family in this category because, in my opinion, “the best of friends are family and the best of family are friends.” Some people simply fall into our lives from heaven, which is an especially fine gift. However, there are other friendships which are earned over time. In such cases we may come to admire certain qualities in one another which draw us together, or come to someone’s aid in a difficult situation and a deeper friendship grows out of that interaction. Either way, a true friend is one of those people who we let into our hearts. The world is filled with acquaintances and folks we meet along the way, and many people build a life of relationships on that uncommitted host, only to find that in their hour of greatest need they are all alone … or that their moments of triumph lack a comrade to share in them. My exhortation for today is for each of us to be a friend. That is the secret of building a foundation of friendship in any life. We need to take a proactive approach to people in general and treat them as we would choose to be treated. Like a marriage (which is a friendship of the highest order) or any other relationship, friendship must be cultivated and nurtured and built over time and it will, inevitably, bring the occasional heartache as well. People aren’t perfect and they will definitely let us down, that is the nature of life. We will likely mistreat others as well, or at least have it perceived so. However, time proves out relationships and those which stand that test of time can become a source of boundless joy and encouragement. So take heart, take action … and take a chance, because there’s a whole wide world of friends out there just waiting to be discovered. And the way to find them is to be one.

Celebrating Friendship
There is always cause to celebrate
If one surrounds himself with friends
For the enjoyment of their fellowship
Is a gift which never ends
Through triumph and through tragedy
True friends are always near
To support and offer counsel
And a strength which casts off fear
A friend is there to guide you
Through the dark of blackest night
To offer wisdom when you falter
And to join you in the fight
Yet, when good fortune smiles as well
A friend should also share
In the joy which is compounded
By his simply being there
There is always cause to celebrate
When one is wise enough to see
How much more each moment lived can mean
In a true friend’s company
By Frank Carpenter ©