All friendships are special. If you picture having a garden full of relationships, they're all different kinds of plants. They're beautiful, wonderful flowers, succulents, trees, fruits that all weave a tale of you.
Some relationships are new acquaintances, and they might appear as tiny beautiful daisies. Some friends that you don't always keep in contact with but when you're together you pick up right where you left off might be represented as a succulent or another low maintenance plant. I would imagine family relationships have thick, deep roots like trees. A romantic relationship would be represented to me as an orchid or a peony bush.
I would imagine old, childhood friends as beautiful raspberry bushes or a collection of sunflowers. the oldest of friendships, although extremely important, can sometimes get lost in the chaos of life. It's sometimes easy to get off track and to not nurture these relationships as we settle into new aspects of life.
Old friends are crucial though. They keep you true to yourself and they’re a constant reminder of growth, compassion, and love.
I’ve always valued my friends, but I think I truly began to realize their true worth more recently.
As my friends and I forge new work relationships, social relationships and romantic relationships, I’m always excited to hear and share and meet these new people!
Two of my oldest friends, Taylor and Sofia, and I always try to get together. This last weekend, we decided to have our boyfriends meet over dinner. When I told my boyfriend, Joe, about the idea he was so excited! Excited to get to know people that have known my whole life.
I was a little nervous honestly. Good nervous, but nervous none the less. Just like when Joe met my mom or my brother as well it was nerve-racking not because I didn’t think they’d get along but because they have known me my whole life and mean so much to me.
As we met up, exchanged introductions and Started to share stories, all of that melted away.
We exchanged old stories of each other, laughed at ourselves, and gave our boyfriends all a more profound profile of each of us. We've remained friends for almost fifteen years (or longer who knows) through losses, gains, fights, and laughter. We're all so different but the same. My sunflowers make me who I am, they've seen me throughout time and will always help form who I will be.
Although life can get crazy, hectic and sometimes overwhelming, it's always important to keep up with the people in your life who have been there from the start. You need to tend to the different parts of your garden, not all at once. But over time it should all reflect equal effort in my opinion.
Including old friends in what sometimes feels like your 'new' life helps make bonds, both new and old, deeper and more profound. Nurture the beautiful relationships that you have been blessed to find throughout your life, because no matter where you are, they will always feel like home.
