Lasting friendships that grow, mature and deepen overtime...
I have a friend in the town I live in and she is so truly dear to my heart, I love her....we both landed here about 15 years ago...she and I both lived in California prior to coming out to Florida, we lived in the same Ashram Community for many years, at least for a decade...we never spoke with one another privately but we would smile and acknowledge one another in passing as we went about our business...that was about the extent of things...we never shared a meal together.
Then she moved here at the end of 2003 (I had no idea) and a few months later I arrived to be with my love. We happen to run into each other soon after and were shocked to see we had both moved to the same city in Fl. We spent some time getting to know one another more since clearly we had some important things in our lives in common but we drifted apart after awhile as we were both involved in our own lives..we would occasionally see one another somewhere like the store and catch up...
Fast forward about a decade later, 4 years ago or so...we met up at the center (that's connected with the Ashram community we lived in)...we both had stopped attending the center here in town for many years and both returned right around the same time several years later....when we saw each other again it felt like a homecoming... something was different, we both had gone through a HUGE amount since we had last seen one another...she had gone through tremendous and multiple health challenges for those years...she's amazing and has gone through and overcome so much...and of course I had gone through all of my deep and multiple health challenges as well.....and then their were loss(es)...my husband had recently passed a few short months prior, so I was in a bit of a state...she had met Chris....she asked if I'd like to go to a lake house about an hour away for a few days to get away and off we went...us two and my cat Eleanor came along with us.
When I arrived and got into the bedroom I was to stay...I felt cozy...like I had just gone home, back to my grandmothers house or something...it was a special kind of "safe feeling" that just oooozed with warmth...and sure enough from that safety and with a friend who clearly cared, as I woke up in that single bed looking out the window the next morning..I had one of the deepest, longest, most profound releases of grief that one can probably have...gut wrenching, heartbreaking grief...but here's the thing...."I was held"... she was there for me...she took me in her arms and she rocked me....she held me...she stroked my back...she stroked my hair...she held me with ALL of her heart/soul and hands. She held on tight...she wasn't gonna let me go. That's it. That's all. And that was EVERYTHING. It was everything. It meant the world to me and I'll never forget it. Isn't that what we need in such times of pain and distress??? To be 'held'. Whether your in person or not... Just to be held. You can feel it...it's presence, pure love and compassion.
I will never forget that moment with my dear friend. And fortunate for me, I have other dear friends I can and will write about another time, that have been every bit as loving and are my soul's resting place. I'm just so grateful for this dear beloved friend, sister. Simple. Pure. Kindness. Goes a very long way. It can save a life.
If you are alone or feel alone and you don't feel you have a friend to turn to in your heartbreak or grief, reach out. I am here for you. Reach out and let yourself be held in your time of need. Reach out to someone. You are never alone. You never know who can be a vehicle for love and comfort in your life in such times. Soul friendships in your life will blossom again, overtime.