Friendships can be so easily taken for granted. Once a good friendship is established, it is easy to maintain, and that is what makes them so good. Don’t get fooled by the easiness of a good friend to think that the relationship doesn’t need some continuous nurturing.
One of my very best friends is someone I met 25 years ago in college. Mike and I met on the first day of college waiting for our first class, Geology lab. After 45 minutes of getting to know each other outside the classroom, we realized together when an upperclassman walked by to tell us that labs don’t start until the second week of classes. The rest is history.
Growing up, I never really had a best friend except for my brother. My brother was a great friend but being 10 months apart, he kind of had to be my friend.
Mike had very similar experiences with friends which is a key reason we connected so quickly. Since that time we were in each other’s weddings, spend time with each other’s extended families, and shared triumphs and struggles together.
Last week Mike visited my family while on business with an organization in North Carolina. He runs an international family business with his dad. If you own an airport runway, you need to call Mike. His company is the only one that does what they do.
A good friendship is when there is little or no effort to keep it going. It doesn’t start that way. To get there:
- Get your ingredients. Determine your most valuable friendships. These friendships are those you can see decades in the future.
- Bake. Maintain and care for the friendship. It is up to you to stay in touch and foster the relationship.
- Simmer and cool. Like cooking on the stove, at some point turn down the heat and let the friendship settle. Like the previous step, you want to keep the friendship alive but you don’t want to force a friendship that doesn’t exist.
- Enjoy. Once the friendship settles, you can effortlessly enjoy benefits of an established friendship. If the friendship doesn’t settle it may need a little time or it may not be a friendship meant-to-be.
I really appreciate the friendships I have made throughout my career, with neighbors, people we have known through our kids activities, and now with friends from all over the world who read this blog. I am looking forward to a lifelong friendship with you.
Who is your best friend? Why?
What have you found to make friendships
stick together for the long haul?
Great post. I don’t have one best friend but my best friends are the people I love and trust the most in my life. What make my friendships with them last beyond primary and high school and after high school is because we stick together through thick and thin regardless whether we are near or far from each other.
Great testimonial. Thank you for sharing your comment.
Well said, Chris. We’ve come along way since that Geo lab!
–Mike
Thanks Mike. We have come a long way and guess I can also say we still have a long way to go.
Great post. What amazes me is how I am able to continue making friends as an adult. I didn’t have many friends either as a child, but somewhere along the way I figured out how to do it and maintain them.
Nancy
Thanks Nancy. I’m glad we have become friends.
I am too! I never would have dreamt that my sitting in on your class, then finding you in Freshly Pressed, would have started a friendship.
I hope next week is the end of the excessive OT for a while. I’ve got some thoughts to share with you when I’m not so tired.
Great post and good reminder to keep the friendships and build new friendships. The trouble is when the settings where you met have been different, sometimes you lot contact.
Thanks for your comment.
pinoyleonardo reblogged this on Rob A Minute! and commented: Good friends are hard to find. You also have to exert effort to make it work and last. As we grow old in the passing of years, our friends come and go because we change work and move places. This post is a good reminder to keep those friendships alive. Unfortunately, due to distance, it may not be as solid as I wish my friendships would be. It’s also time to build strong forges, once again!
Thanks for the reblog. I love “Rob A Minute”.
True I agree with you Bro, I have made friends here at Blogosphere and I cherish them as if they’re really with me though I’m seeing them virtually through their every post..I hope we can be friends too..=)
Well worded John. I’m looking forward to our friendship too.
Thanks for sharing this.. great article po….
I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting.
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