Friends, Friends 1,2,3 All My Friends Are Here With Me

This week has been all about friends.

I had dinner with a friend I met while I was doing my internship. I was wonderful to get to see her, have dinner with her, and get some encouragement. In a life that is becoming more and more routine as the days go on, she was a breath of fresh air.  I didn't realize how much I'd missed her sense of humor and particular brand of companionship until I was with her again.

I also had dinner with one of my girlfriends from college. She lived down the hall from me and we had... let's just say that we had a damn good time when we were in school. Some of it may or may not have made it to video. Which is never to be posted to Youtube. Anyway... we got to live it up, ordering drinks and bullshitting about whatever. I made connections with her friends who tagged along, which was really awesome.

I'm planning on having dinner this week with one of my neighbors. She's just about one of the sweetest funniest ladies around. I hope when I'm in my sixties I'm that awesome. Although, I think she likes keeping me around because my real life is a soap opera, and there is *always* something happening. I'm living, breathing entertainment here folks!

Then, I had dinner tonight with my friends down here. Somehow, and I'm still not entirely sure how, we all crammed around this little table and shared pizza. We swapped stories. We teased each other. There was laughter and understanding and inside jokes. It was family. Who cares that we all have different parents?

I also have had long phone dates with some of the women that I am closest to in this world. Two hour conversations that seem like minutes. Conversations about silly things, funny things, serious things, shopping things. I don't think there was a single topic that hasn't been covered in the last week or so.

I have friends supporting different endeavors that I'm taking on. Friends who are supporting me with their knowledge and skills. They're there, mentally, physically, and spiritually. I find that it makes all the difference in the world to have that backup.

I also have friends who are embarking on great adventures. They're sharing their talents. They're making a difference. They're taking a stand. It's so awesome to watch, and a wonderful feeling to have one's heart swell with a proprietary pride. Yes, these are my friends, and look what they're doing. They really are changing the world.

Then there are friends who are struggling. Who are hurting. Who need someone to be there mentally, physically, and spiritually. We're banding together, doing what we can, each person using their strengths.  We're creating a support system that is unrivaled. It requires a great deal of intimacy and trust, but we're doing it beautifully. There is a give and take among us that we're hitting at what seems to be just the right pace.

We're always learning about and from each other. Sharing interests and enriching each other's lives. Together it seems like my friends have a storehouse of knowledge that would knock the world over. There is always some interesting conversation going on, a teaching of something. The academic to the practical to the off the wall is there for the asking and the giving.

The bottom line: there is nothing missing from my life. I feel like as a single person, sometimes the "something's missing" mentality can get overwhelming. There isn't contentment because of this desire that isn't being met. I'm guilty of it from time to time. Sometimes it's more than time to time if we're being perfectly honest.

 But then there are weeks like this.

Weeks that remind me that I am not all alone. That my life is full and happy and full of love. I love people who live thousands of miles away, and they love me. We talk. We break bread together. We laugh. We really live. We do the nitty gritty aspects of life together.

There is nothing missing from the equation.
There isn't a man shaped hole in my life.
It's quite freeing to realize that.