Show Yourself Friendly

I'm off to make some new friends this weekend. I'll be attending the Faith & Fiction Retreat with some writer-friends and authors I've only met online.

I hope to come away rejuvenated and with great new friends.

The first need that God saw in man after He'd finished his creation was the need for relationship.

That's why people who isolate themselves are often unhappy, depressed, angry, or otherwise heartsick people.

Because we need other people. We need relationship.

Relationship with God is priceless and family relationships can be wonderful.

But some of the most cherished relationships are friends.

God draws us to Him and waits for us to respond. Family, well, they get us through birth or other connections. But friends? We get to choose our friends, and they us.

Some of the best friends come from childhood because these are the folks you learn and grow with. Unfortunately, as distance and time separate, these friendships are often lost or diminished.

Then there are friendships that come in adulthood from school, work, or church. These friendships bring value because we connect over shared interests, likes and dislikes. We choose to spend time and energy cultivating the relationships.

Most of my friends live in other states, a fact I detest. As much as I enjoy keeping in touch with people online, and that would include the many people I've met online in the writing community, there's nothing like getting together with a friend.

Because we've only lived in FL for four years, and in that time, we've lived in several different places, I haven't made too many friends here yet. I have a few co-workers who I'd call friends now and we're finally in the area where I expect to be for a while so I hope to make some friends there too.

I miss the camaderie of hanging out with my "gurls".

But, once again, friendship begins with me.

In order to have a friend, I must first be a friend.

"A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly"

Working on this year's presidential campaign will give me a chance to get to know some more people in the area and it's too early to say but I've already connected with one woman with definite girlfriend potential. We have a lot in common--married, three sons, from NY--and we clicked.

Time will tell but in the meantime, I'll just try to be friendly.

Do you spend time with your friends? Have you reached out to old friends recently? Have you made any new ones?

Peace & Blessings,
Patricia