It Makes Me Proud...

Every day, it seems like life goes by a little faster. And as life zooms by, it seems to get harder and harder to develop and maintain true friendships. You know, the "through thick and thin" type of friendships like Lucy and Ethel, the main characters of Friends, and more currently, the Big Bang Theory? No matter what time of day, there is always someone on the other side of the door to lend an ear when one of the characters experience some sort of personal angst. Wow, it is simply amazing how that works out on TV. lol

Unfortunately, that is not exactly how things always work out. The saying that "it's hard to hit a moving target" seems to sum up the social situations of many I know. Work here, call here, take the kids here, watch the grand kids there... I am lucky if the open time in my schedule lines up with the open time in my friends' lives once a month (with advanced notice!) let alone spontaneously unannounced several times a day. With balancing such hectic lifestyles, it is easy to feel isolated and unconnected.

A couple weeks ago, a good friend of mine passed away. He had been a friend of mine for 20 years and had encouraged me from the very beginning of my calling "career". He was a wonderful guy - warm-hearted and generous - and although I never saw him outside of the square dance hall, I considered him one of my dearest friends.

If you are not a square dancer, you might find that surprising. But that is one of the most wonderful things about square dancing- the lifelong friendships that you develop along the way. On the day of the funeral, as I walked up to the church, I saw several square dancers standing outside. Inside, there were even more. I was overwhelmed that so many people from our square dance activity dropped everything in the middle of a weekday to attend the funeral of a fallen dancer. I remembered when my grandmother passed. I had only been in the activity a short time, and yet, many dancers came to support me (even though none of them had ever met my grandmother...). And even though I never asked them to come, they came to support and encourage me during that dark time in my life. I will be eternally grateful for that demonstration of care and genuine concern. Square dancers are an amazing group of people.

Square dancers love to have a good time but they rally around when the chips are down. It makes me proud to be part of a group that truly demonstrates the "through thick and thin" kind of friendship. How truly blessed I am.