Friendships

When I was in Shreveport this past week, I was in the Lifeway store and saw a girl that I went to high school with, but for some reason I didn't speak to her. At first I said it was because I wasn't sure it was her, but that wasn't true. I knew exactly who it was. I don't know if she saw me, recognized me or not. My hair makes it kind of hard to not recognize me. I had flash backs to when I was in high school and I went to get a Mother's Day card at a drug store and saw a boy that had been my "boyfriend" in 3rd grade. He even looked at me and neither of us spoke. What is up with that? But what really struck me about seeing this high school friend was, we are "friends" on Facebook. I can go right now and look at pictures of her three kids but I wasn't comfortable talking to her in person. I currently have 752 "friends" on Facebook, and yet how many of them would I speak to in person if I saw them.

It got me to thinking about friendships. Don't get me wrong, I love Facebook. I'm addicted. Especially since we have moved, Facebook lets me stay connected to people that I really do want to stay connected to. But how many of those 752 people would I say were really my friends? Moving makes you consider who your true friends are. Who do I miss talking to? Who do I take the time to call or check up on? And who takes the time to check up on me?

Its funny about making new friends. Its easier to make new friends when you have kids because you hang out together at sporting events, you have those kids in common, and yet having kids makes it harder to have free time to spend together to build your friendship. I feel like I have made three good friends here already, and other ladies that I have enjoyed hanging out with. But moving and making new friends makes you examine yourself and wonder what kind of friend you want to be. You can start from scratch and be whoever you want to be. I had a new friend tell me this week that one of the reasons she liked me was because I was real, and that was a huge compliment. I want to be real, and be a good friend. I want to be encouraging and fun to be around. I want to be friendly even to people that may not be a friend. And I am praying to get over my social anxiety and speak to people that I may not know, or may have not seen in years and run into at a store. Praying for God to make me the kind of friend He wants me to be, on Facebook or in person!