Is Yesterday Still A Friend?

Some songs just take you to another place. This one did for me. I started thinking about how we are different with people. When we are growing up we are trying to figure out who we are.  Then we hit college or a career and we have to become focused. We change, grow and some friends will change over the years. Some remain throughout the duration of our lifetimes.

I thought about my first boyfriend. Nothing like your first love. We were best friends before we started dating. I think that's what made it more real. We knew just about everything there was to know about each other. We had a lot of fun. "Back in our day" we would go to the arcade and get ice cream sundaes or the pizza parlor on a Friday night. Go bowling, the movies or the mall and walk n talk and people watch. We were inseparable. Fond memories of a great time. Like all good things that come to an end, so did we. We grew up and our lives took us to different paths. I wonder if we would still be best friends today, like then? How much have we really changed? Do we miss the things we enjoyed doing back then? What are our likes now?

I also thought about friends, past and present. High school friends. Friends in my early adult life. When I was first married. When I had small children. And now.

High school friends are great or horrible. As kids we can be horrible to one another. I think we had a great group of people during my time. We lost a few precious ones along the way. Losing high schools friends way to young is a life lesson I wish we were never taught in life. It was also an awkward time for most of us. Somehow we all manage to survive it, with fond memories. Sport championships,  really learning how to play music through guitar or piano, learning how to drive and all those other things we did for the first time that bonded us!! Carnivals and festivals great meeting places to have a wicked time!! We also had the Sand Dunes, Carrs Pond, and Tiogue Lake. Facebook, twitter and instagram, are greats ways to keep track of one another over the years. Who do you still know from those years?

Friends in your twenties!!! WOW!! Some interesting years and I thought high school was tough to navigate through!! LOL Good, Good, times. Starting our careers or college life. Trying to balance all this new adulty stuff. Learning who and what are/is a good influence for us. Striving for our life goals during this time, can be daunting and we need a solid circle around us. Legal drinking age. Paying bills out on our own for the first time. We learn that adult problems are a bit more intense than back in high school. We also learn who has our backs and what lengths we are willing to go to for them. Surrounding yourself with the right group for you during this time is valuable. Your circle during this time will help mold n shape you into becoming who you are. You also learn what is important to you as you head towards the dreaded 30's. Could you be friends with the same people as then now? Do you still have the same lifestyles?

Marriage and small kids friends.  They are great when we start out raising a family!! Learning what works for your family and having those friends going through similar situations is a blessing!! The laughter, tears and support are immeasurable!! Nobody was given a manual on marriage or raising a child (Bible does not tell you how to make baby cereal for the first time or what to do when your past the honeymoon stage and those cute things he/she does are not so cute anymore!! lol) Having child play-dates with parents that have the same values as us. Needing other adults in our lives to keep us sane during those years is priceless! Also to share in the milestones and joys. We may keep these friends for the rest of our lives. Our lifestyles have changed and our circle has too. Take a look at your circle now and compare it to then, what do you see?

The golden years. I hope when I get there, I have a few friends that I can count on. We can act like we are in our twenties again and come n go as we please, take the grandchildren out and spoil then rotten, and go exploring when we feel like it. Maybe we will end up in a nursing home and we will laugh at all of our adventures we have shared over the years.

The one thing I do know about friendship, is that you make the time for them effortlessly, when you carry them in your heart daily, they are a part of you just as much, if not more, than your family are. You have to give to it in order for it to survive. You do not always get what you give out in return. When it is a real friend it doesn't matter anyways. We have friends that we lose touch with for many reasons, some good and some bad. Some help us get through a rough patch or are there to share in a joyous time in our lives.

We can not control who walks in or out of our lives, but we can make an impact while they are with us. Each friend brings something out in us. How we are with them leaves a mark. What would we change? What can we be proud of? What do we want to forget? Do we need to forgive? What do you want them to remember about you?

So, I ask you this, Is yesterday still a Friend?

Until next time,
~It is what it is~