I loved camp, camp was so much fun. When I was there 30 years ago...(Yes, you read it right), I learned so many songs and rhymes, many of which have remained useful tools in entertaining my children to this very day!
Among the wacky tunes we learned, a few stood out that seemed to have held some true meaning and a little less goofy alligator chomping or bee stomping.
"Make new friends, but keep the oooooolllllldddd,
One is silver and the other gooooollllllldddd..."
Remember it, sung in a "round?" Is is stuck in your head now? Sorry about that but I do have a point.
This past week I was able to see a friend I had not spent time with in about 16 years. Far too long but distance and life have a funny way of keeping us from spending as much time with old friends let alone family.
So that begs the question, do we settle into our new lives making new friends with the people that surround us...neighbors, co-workers, parents of the kids on our kid's sports teams? Will we forget those friends we grew up?
My answer is yes and no. Of course we must forge ahead and make shiny new friends, that's what life is about and you can never have too many friends.
On the flip side, we must take the time to nurture and reacquaint ourselves with our oldest friends. Those relationships are the kind that shape the people we've become.
Those friends allow us to be kind, patient and tolerant of others with differences from our own but will still call us on our crap. They helped mold our beliefs and values and frankly, those friends are the ones that know us best. Those friends are the ones that have seen us at our best and worst and like us anyway.
With the power of the Internet and social networking sites, we are able to reconnect with so many. We can keep up on one anothers' lives with the click of a mouse and still feel as though we are sharing in our day to day routines, even from 3000 miles away.
Cliche' but true, you can pick your friends but you can't pick your family. I will say this, my friends are family. In some of my darkest hours, my friends have been there for me, both new and old so I feel so fortunate to have met so many amazing people and I only hope that I can be the kind of friend that they have been to me.
Today my message is this:
New friends are like silver tinsel: shimmery, fancy and fun.
But old friends are just as shiny, and like a sturdy gold watch, completely reliable and strong, They just might take a bit more polishing in order to see the glow.
Hey, anyone feel like heading to camp?
Awww loved this!! And yes, I remember camp and that song is now stuck in my head! In the past year or so I've taken a good look at my friendships and have had to weed out a few people who weren't true friends. It's made me appreciate the ones who are and because of that I've put more of an effort into keeping in touch. Speak of that... when are we meeting up at Mahe?!?!? Xoxox
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