Happy Friends and Converse-ations

I giggle behind my hand in our local Deli as a coffee cup steams in my hand; I lean towards Sue as we talk in soft voices sharing gossip and news. 

                 "A Friend is a person with whom one enjoys mutual affection and regard; one  
                attached to another by affection or esteem ; a favoured companion"

Definitions which fail to capture the richness of friendship.

Friendships sheltered me when a hurricane of change blew my life into fragments. I clung to the tiniest gestures, a trip out for a coffee when I could  barely walk; an unexpected visit lightened the black cloud which had settled on my shoulders;  fifteen minute piano lessons at home with encouragement when little progress is made; the unexpected offer of a trip to Westonbirt, not knowing I am desperate to go; hours on the phone listening as tears drip off my nose and anger bursts from every pore; an arm when I want to swim; shared delight when my Converse become glued to my feet; an offer to shop and lunch.


The arms of long term friendships envelop me. New Friends have been blown my way on wispy clouds when the hurricane of change was too much for others. So many Sues I have nick names; 'old' Sue, Swimming Sue, Piano Sue.... Cathy, Chris, Val, Jon, Jacky, Corinne, Michele, Erwin, Ron, Eleri, Mark, Jayne, Owen, Linda, Julie, Steve, Bryony, Paul, Anne, Jane, Dave, Kate, Maja, Helen, Mike.
My friends and foundations; Mandy & Pete, Adrian & Helen, Luke, Lois, My Mom. 
(forgive me if I have forgotten any of you..you know who you are)

Mr H; the brick wall that protects me when the wind of exhaustion takes control, the arms that direct me when I don't know where to turn; the heart that beats beside me, the shared laughter when the sun shines.

Friendships are my precious flowers which I nurture and feed to ensure they grow.

The only way to have a friend is to be one

Ralph Waldo Emerson