Friends Forever

  • By Trish Berg
  • July 24, 2012
  • 333
                        
Struggling with loads of laundry, clutter in the kitchen and chaos in your life? Stress can easily steal our joy. Trish Berg reminds us to simplify the small stuff and find Joy in the Journey. She was my best friend. You know the one. The girlfriend that signed “friends forever” on every note passed between you in sixth grade study hall. We met in junior high English class, and seemed to be joined at the hip from that moment on. Her name is Lisa, and I miss her. We have grown apart, as sometimes happens in life, when husbands, kids and careers seem to take over. But she is truly a big part of who I am today, and the grownup friendships I have been blessed with. When we were young, Lisa and I spent many sleepless nights at one another’s homes talking, giggling, and growing up. We dreamed about this boy or that, and could hardly wait to be old enough to date. We both fell in love in high school with the “man of our dreams,” and thought it was for keeps, only to discover that love was more complicated than we thought, and maybe we needed more time to figure it all out. We graduated from college with huge smiles and big plans, and an entire lifetime ahead of us. Today, I have been blessed with grown up girlfriends, who are more like sisters than friends. Hanging out with each of them is like slipping my feet into a soft, warm pair of slippers. My girlfriends see me at my worst and yet love me for my best. They know my fears, and they help me to not be afraid. They see my failures and encourage me to keep trying. They make me laugh more than should be allowed by law and we give each other grace to mess up and still love each other no matter what. I love my husband, and he is truly my best friend. But there is something about having close friendships with girlfriends that just makes life complete. We get each other. We understand what we mean even when words aren’t possible. When I am having a bad day, I will sometimes call one of my girlfriends and say, “I am only telling you this because I know you will still love me even though this makes me look really bad, selfish and mean.” And they do. I can completely unload the stress of my day on my girlfriends, and they will listen, laugh, and love me anyway. And they call me on it, whatever it is. When I am in the wrong, they tell me. They speak the truth to me, which I need to hear as much as I need to be understood. They lead me towards compassion, forgiveness and grace when I am walking towards anger and revenge. They point me towards love when I want to hate. They give me space when I need to be alone and when I am lonely, they come by my side and hold me. I am far from perfect, and my friends are even farther (just kidding). But together, we can find our way through this complicated and imperfect life side by side. We may not pass notes in study signed “friends forever,” but I think that goes unsaid. And though life may be more complicated than we thought, we still have time to figure it all out, side by side. And maybe that’s what forever means.


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