A WEEK FOR FRIENDS

What does being a friend mean to you?

This is a week I need to be with friends, 

a week when I want to remind myself of the value of friendship.

A friend, who spent some time in Paris recently, managed to stuff one more item into her suitcase on her way home. She brought me a tin of Lipton's Russian Earl Grey tea, a version of a familiar tea that is only available in Paris. Her thanks, she said, because, "We referred to your list of Paris Sites every day." Her small gesture joins a list of kindnesses that I have received from other people. I hope I am known for kind gestures too.

I have taken a lifetime to learn to be a better friend. Along the way, I have met many good role models who have shown me how to be more open to other people and to be a good friend.

I've been in many groups where friendships have developed over projects, over children, over common perspectives, work assignments, or because we all lived far from our homes. Our friendships made us better than we are by ourselves.

This week, when we all need to reconsider what we value most, 

I put at the top of my list the value of friendship.

"Some people come into our lives and quickly go....Some stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same."  Flavia Weedn