FRIENDS LIKE THESE

I just read another blog where a friend honoured her buddy and it got me thinking about Friendships in general so while these thoughts are fresh in my mind I thought to blog a little bit about friendships .

I am almost 58 years old so have seen friends come and go and some stay and some wander off and some come to a natural ending and some are doomed for lots of different reasons.

I have no idea where the following quote comes from but it sounds right.!

Some friends are here for a reason
Some friends are here for a season
Some friends are here for life.

I can look back and see where and how my friends have fitted into this wee saying. I have especially valued those friends who have stood by me for decades and seen me at my best and at my worst and still love me and want to spend time with me....they are the ones who are there for LIFE.

As someone whose entire childhood was spent wandering here there and everywhere I rarely was able to keep friendships going but in recent years with the fabby facebook and internet I have regained some of those precious ones who had given me some stability in the middle of my traumas.

Caroline...who I met almost 53 years ago on our first day at school....no matter we haven't seen each other for 30 years ..( she visited me in hospital when I had Andrew ) we have always kept in touch by Christmas letters and cards but now as both of us are Grannys we so enjoy each others lives even tho we may never see each other. Caroline may never know how much I loved her and her family...they were so kind to me and gave me hope for the future at a time when life was bleak. The wee bakery Carolines mum worked ....kept me in pies when I had no dinner money...(pretty sure she sneaked them to us as I never remember anyone paying )

Janie....who I met in my teens...my goodness we had some adventures....didn't we.??.. stuff I wouldn't even tell my kids about but it was the early 70s and life was a gas.!!! we experimented with lots of things including  threepenny single ciggies from the corner shop and cider from the Offy when we could sneak it...( not saying any more )...again FBook has brought us back in touch after decades and its been so great to catch up .

Pat....who we shared our boys together for many years...and had so much pain and hurts as we each worked through lives awful happenings...living next door for years and being there for each other when life was at its toughest....and to see her on my last visit to Scotland knowing how poorly she was broke my heart but just to see her again was so precious....

Friends in the early years down here in Bracknell....Sue...Edie...women of God who introduced me to Jesus...showed all my family love and care and invited us into their hearts and their homes...Norma ..a very special neighbour who took time to show me the sights (!) of Bracknell and Maggie who kept me sane through the early years....all very precious gifts to me at the time....and even though I may not see them often or at all as Maggie died earlier this year my heart is full of memories and thanks for them.

There have been friends who I have worked alongside in childminding or respite care and friends who have been the parents of these very special children and young people...Fiona...Lynn...Isobel...all incredible women who have walked journeys with me and shared the good and the painful especially Ofsted moments and Paediatric First Aid courses,!!! How much the poorer my family life would be without their children ( and young adults) enriching my life....

Looking back over the last 20 plus years I can see several friends who have been there for me for reasons and seasons...we have shared children...child care...swapped jobs and church roles...held each others hands when needed and lent shoulders to lean on and cry on when needed.

Linking a thread through these years have been two very special women...Iris and Bren ...who I can honestly say I wouldn't be the woman I am today if they had been missing in my life...they have consistently propped me up when I have been falling...have wept with me...have laughed with and at me...have holidayed with me and mine...have shared Christmas times..  Easters and birthdays...have rejoiced with me at weddings and special times and have prayed for me and mine when I have run out of spiritual steam..Realistically as Iris is older than me and Bren has cancer I am unsure how long they will be in my life but one thing I know for sure I plan to let them know as often as I can and in as many ways as I can think of just how precious to me they are...

Within this season there are also others who I can mention ... friends who I know will take me "up in their lift " you know who you are....I may only see you once or twice a year for a coffee or just the odd time at church or a conference... but we link up as if the gap of time isn't important at all.

Finally....there is the friendship I share with my daughter....Catriona Elizabeth Mooney...altho I share her now with the fabby Mr Nick Kent.... somehow or other God gifted me this precious child. I never had any kind of relationship with my own mum ...so having a daughter was doubly special for me..yes we have had our tough times but we have been refined together over the years and learned from each other how we tick and how we can be friends but also a mum and a daughter. I am so grateful to God for the gift of life....in Cat...also for the precious sons he gave me too in Michael and Andrew..and the amazing women in their lives too...Debs and Limara..you are just the best girlys I could ask for and not missing out Mathilda who I think is just the best grand-daughter I could ask for and  for all of them.... I hope we get to enjoy many years of friendship as we all grow old together.

Finally....Finally....the other two  "men " in my life...Chris and Elisha...yep...my hubby is my best ever friend...none can come close to how much I value him and Elisha.....I can say nothing more about him other than he makes my heart smile all the time....and soon he will be keeping company with the latest little bean in the belly ...exciting times in the lives of all my "friends" !!