Guidelines for friends.

I have three very good friends... 2 of them I knew growing up, but they really weren't friends with each other; the other is my best buddy from the MCC ward and she doesn't know the first 2. I love them all in different ways and for different reasons. 

P is the happiest person in the world.  She's very confident, and open, and I want to be just like her.  P also is a cosmetic~savvy lady, so much so that I love to look at her eyes and the beautiful sparkly stuff that she puts around them.  Oh, and she has the MOST gorgeous hair.  Seriously, it's the most beautiful shade of red that you can imagine!  AND she has the BEST laugh in the whole world.  I would know her laugh anywhere; she makes me laugh just by hearing her laugh!

G has always been the one that I share everything with.  She helps me and I help her.  I love her and her girls.  Each of her daughters are SO different from the other, they are beautiful together.  G is the one that is patient with me, doesn't beat around the bush, and we share our trials.  She  has tried over and over and over to teach me how to crochet... it just goes over my head.  She knows just how to phrase things to make me feel better.

M, oh M.  The first time I met her, I hated her.  We joke about it.  I thought she was a snob, she thought I was a brat.  We were both right.  Then, we got stuck together on the stand in church and got to realize that we have the same sense of humor.  A few years ago, I was on bedrest and she had just had foot surgery to remove a pencil (ouch, long story).  I was bummed, so I called her.  She came over and we played "The Lord of the Rings" on the XBox for hours.  Lots of Hours.  When Curt came home, we bossed him into going to get us Chinese food.  Poor guy; it was like he had two wives, one on crutches and one on bedrest.  He decided that the polygamists were crazy... or deaf.

Anyway, my relationship with these wonderful ladies has been ongoing and we have had trials!  We have worked through them.  We have learned from them.  I love them as though the were my own sisters.  They will never replace my wonderful sisters and sisters-in-law, but they are very much a part of my family.

I was thinking about them today.  I was reading a book that talked about complicated friendships. We all have them, but what I've learned from them is monumental.  This mostly applies to friends, sometimes to family and hopefully, they are the same thing.

Sometimes patience is the only thing that you can give to a friend.

Saying "sorry" isn't the fix in every situation... but at least it's a start.

When feeling replaced by someone else, remember that they'll still always be there.

Don't sit by your friends in church... you might end up with the bishop staring at you to be quiet and stop laughing.

The best feeling in the world is getting a call from someone that you think has forgotten about you.

Forgiveness is key... even if you aren't quite sure what you're being forgiven for or what you're forgiving.

Silence is golden... especially when wanting to give unsolicited advice.

Letters matter... write one.

Emails are great, but they are no substitiution for good, old, face-to-face conversation.

Friendship goes way beyond friends... they become family; hopefully, family can become friends.

When a friend moves away... nighttime minutes are free but call on a Friday night.  That way you can talk for hours and not have to stress about getting up in time for something in the morning!

If you are going on vacation, always stay with your friends.  They miss you as much as you miss them.

Love your friends.  Love your family.  Love your neighbor.  All this is easier if you love yourself.