NOT about quilts, today I needed to write about friendships.
If you only had one more chance to ask forgiveness or give it would you? I thought about this question after attending a forever friend's birthday party. We met in 5th grade and she joined 2 other friends (I met them in 3rd grade) as my VERY best friends. And in our freshman year we added another friend to our little group. We all had other friends and activities that did not involve the whole group which made our friendships even better.
Now at age 63, a member of our group has terminal cancer. She has "put up a good fight," enjoying the last 14 months as best she could while taking chemo and radiation. She visited places on her bucket list, had long weekends with friends and family. Most importantly she and her beautiful daughter have had long meaningful talks and adventures.
A few months before her diagnosis she and a member our "group" had "words." The old playground verse; "Sticks and Stones can break my bones but words will never harm me" is not true. Once words are said they can't be taken back or easily forgotten. The only thing left to do if you want to retain that relationship is to ask and give forgiveness. It hurts my heart to know that they can not get past those hurtful words.
As with all relationships a long term friendship ebbs and flows. There may be months or years when you don't see each other and during that time your friend is changing. When you meet again you can't expect them to be the same as they were when you last met. They may have made life choices you are surprised about. Listening and responding to their life story is quite different than judging the choices they made.
Life is short, friends are important. Let them know they are important to you. Accept them for who THEY are not who YOU want them to be. If you do or say something that hurts someone, ask for forgiveness and mean it. If you are offended from someone's words or actions and they ask for your forgiveness please forgive them.
Jesus forgave all our sins. You can, too.
Sandy
