The Art of Friendship

Yesterday afternoon I got to spend time having coffee at an art museum with one of my best friends. I really cherish that time. It  never seems long enough! I started thinking about the art of friendship afterwards and I think these days truly great friendships are hard to come by. So if you have a friendship like this, cherish the friend and the time you get with them.

Friendships are something that I think can be taken for granted. The truth is we need to put into a friendship as much as we want to get out of it plus some. I am definitely at fault to this as much as anyone else. The friend I met with yesterday is someone who I consider a truly great friend. We have known each other since we were in grade school. We have laughed together, cried together, adventured together and even fought with each other. Yet we have still come out on top. I think the hardest moments have strengthened our friendship the most because it is in these times we have to ask for forgiveness and forgive.

Art Museum

Those difficult times also deepen the friendship. If you can make it through a fight and still call each other friends, your friendship is worth more than ever. The hard moments also make the great moments that much more wonderful to share. I think great friendships also help prepare us for life, whether its our relationships with our co-workers, our roommates, our future spouse, or our daily exchanges with people, friendships "train" us for all sorts of situations we may find ourselves in.

I consider myself extremely blessed to have a friendship such as this! I am excited to share many more of life's moments and no matter what those moments are, I will always cherish them! Thank you to those who have shared these friendships with me.

Some of my favorite friendship quotes:

"The better part of one's life consists of his friendships"-Abraham Lincoln

"Friends aren't jumper cables. You don't throw them into the trunk and pull them out for emergencies"-Charlie Krueger

"Friendship is always a sweet responsibility, never an opportunity"-Kahlil Gibran

"The greatest sweetener of human life is friendship. To raise this to the highest pitch of enjoyment, is a secret which but few discover"-Joseph Addison

"I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light"-Helen Keller

"There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, its not my nature"-Jane Austen

"A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you"-Elbert Hubbard