The Gift of Friendship

from Ben's mom

Last week I read little MOPS book called If You Ever Needed Friends It's Now. At less than 100 pages I covered it in two naptimes.

I am blessed with friends. And I wasn't even sure why I was reading the book. But I found it had some good material and more than that, it gave me a chance to reflect on friendship, and some great friends.

The author, Leslie Parrott, mentioned one incident that made me smile. She talked about having a brand new baby in the house and having a friend show up with a bucket of cleaning supplies to clean her house for her. It made me think of feeling so tired when I was pregnant, working long hours and coming home unable to do much besides cook dinner. Not only did my husband pitch in, but my friend Sarah would ask what she could do. MJR was studying for the Bar exam at the time and Sarah and I were spending a lot of time together. Often I was so sick, I would be on the bed and she would talk to me, and do my dishes. Honestly, it was hard on me to let her do anything.

Similarly, I remember with relief having Lindsay come to stay for a few days when all the mothers had left after Ben was born. Lindsay was much more familiar with babies and with baby products than I and just her presence was restful.

I've been thankful recently for some phone calls from friends far away. I tend to get so wrapped up in my day, that I forget to call and talk to a friend. But when I'm on the receiving end, I experience what a lift it is to hear a familiar voice, and commiserate on shared experiences.

Similarly, I'm blessed by emails...one recently from a friend who said I was being too hard on myself and encouraging me in my role as wife and mommy. (Blog comments have the same effect.)

A new joy is that my heart-friend Sara has moved to a town about 25 minutes away (and not long distance). Sara and I have been friends for about 8 years now but for all but the first of year of that we have lived far away from each other. Now her husband is pastor of a church nearby and she is a new mom, not working outside her home for the first time. I'm excited that we've planned a weekly get-together. This week we'll meet for coffee and go to the Farmer's Market together.

I often feel overwhelmed by all the friends I have...and sometimes I feel stretched thin trying to keep up with everyone. But I have learned that you can never have enough friends. Each one is new and different and a blessing in some way. Some you never really get to give back as much as you receive and I don't like that much. But someday, I will clean the house of a brand-new mom, and smile at the gift that keeps on giving. And when she says, "How can I ever repay you?" I will tell her I have a debt of my own to pay, and she should just pass it on.