Sunday Inspiration: Friendship

hubbard_quoteI’m returning today from a week-long Caribbean cruise with my husband and three couples who have become good friends.

I so much enjoyed the tropical beauty, the delicious food, the entertainment, and the peace and quiet. But best of all was the joy of being with my friends.

Perhaps a useful definition of friendship is enjoying a cruise with people so much that you decide to do it again. And that’s what we did. After sailing together last winter, we all immediately booked this cruise so we could be together again.

But another definition of friendship is the one above: friends are those special people who understand where we’ve been and what we have become, and still, gently allow us to grow. That’s not easy because there are parts of each one of us we are ashamed of, parts we would prefer no one witness.

And yet to be a friend is to gently share those secrets and find to our amazement that we’re still accepted and embraced. I’ve explored that theme over and over in my novels. I guess it really resonates for me. Does it do the same for you? Have you found that by sharing, both you and your friends are happier for it?

I’m thankful for my friends, far and near. They have made me life so much richer.  I hope each of you can say the same.

4 Comments

  1. Martha O'Quinn on January 31, 2016 at 8:01 am

    Welcome home Emilie. The following quote (I think by Alexandra Ardonetto) describes my life-long friends, as well as friends from later in life. I hope they might say the same about me. “Sometimes you meet a person and you just click. You’re comfortable with them and you don’t have to pretend to be anyone or anything.”

    • Emilie Richards on February 1, 2016 at 2:47 pm

      And isn’t it nice when that happens?

  2. Kathleen on January 31, 2016 at 11:29 am

    Welcome home to “reality” May it be a gentle return.

  3. Terry Guerra on February 2, 2016 at 6:35 am

    Hi Emilie,

    A few months ago I re-connected with a good friend of several years – I hope we can get back to the friendship I treasured. There is nothing like it, for sure. I am going to try.

    And welcome home!

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