Thank goodness for friendship.

It’s the 20th anniversary for Friends the TV show this year! One of my all time favourite series…okay scratch that, I think it may be my all time favourite series.

With thoughts of Friends, I have had the subject of friendship on my mind for a while. So I thought I would elaborate on these thoughts and convey them to you, and I’ll try not to babble too much.

People say that you can find friendship in the places you least expect, and I find this to be very true.

This is one of my tattoos, representing that I will always love my family with the infinity sign. I consider my close friends a part of my family.

Friendship is a gift, which I am very grateful for. It could be perceived as getting to choose your own little family, I say this because I think of my friends as an extension of my family.

A true friendship survives the test of time, even if you don’t see that friend very often, and some drift away but that’s okay. They have still played a part in your life, and their friendship meant something at the time, maybe even helped to make you the person you are today. With my friends, I know that there is always someone to talk to should I ever feel the need to get something off of my chest, and just having the knowledge that someone is always there in a time of need is a privilege I wish everyone had. I wish everyone had a network of friends like mine because then they would know that they NEVER have to face a problem alone.

I had a conversation with one of my closest friends months ago whilst driving home, and I still remember the most part of that conversation to this day. We decided that when it comes to people, and friendship, we are fighters. Not in a pushy, negative way. In the sense that we don’t like to give up on people easily, and so we won’t let a friendship go without trying. That doesn’t mean that we haven’t lost friends, they can leave your life in the same way which they arrived; in the way which we least expect. However, we cherish the friendships that stay with all that we are.

I am one of those people who looks for the best in others, looking at the positives and trying to keep those at the forefront of my mind, even if they don’t seem like a particularly nice person. You may think I’m naïve  for this, but I don’t think there is much point in thinking of someone negatively before you’ve even gotten to know them. And everyone has flaws, should we really focus on those? I don’t think so. I have found that these people are usually just putting on a mask, because they don’t want to leave themselves open to being hurt.

Don’t judge a book by its cover.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank a few of my friends for being there for me through thick and thin, what better opportunity is there than while writing a post about friendship? For being apart of my ‘little family’, because truth is; I’ve come to love them like family and I’m sure that they already know this, but it’s always nice to be reminded once in a while. I’m giving everyone a nickname, and hopefully people will get them. These people are very dear to me, which is why I’m mentioning them in this post.

I’ve recently started a gratitude journal, and have realised that my friends are in most of the entries. So thanks to:

The crazy UGG lover for getting me through some pretty tough times, even when we were much younger. I’ve known you for more or less my whole life, and wouldn’t have it any other way. You’re great to talk to and have been the voice of reason for me as times have gotten that little bit harder. You’ve stuck by my side in times of need and put up with my weirdness for all this time. I could write a LOT more here but I think that that would take me days, if not weeks to complete.

The panda fanatic for for forgiving me when I’ve been a right numpty,  for being someone I can rely on, for sharing designated driver duties, for making me laugh…a lot, for taking over my duty as the weird one at times, for being bluntly honest when I’ve needed you to be, for taking my bracelet advice that one night (I know the bracelet choice is a big thing for you!). 

The loved up couple:
The animal loving girl, thank you for all of the memories I have with you, most of them make me chuckle or at the very least smile when I’m in need of one. The random texts about silly things you’ve done that day, your advice about things which have puzzled me, being there when I need to talk to you, making great choices with some of our monthly meal places, reminding me of memories I had long forgotten, for letting me accidentally ‘crash’ your family do’s…so much more could be written here.
The gamer boy, thank you for also choosing some awesome places for us to eat at our monthly meals, for also welcoming me as apart of your family, for talking to me about games and letting my gamer side come out without judgement, for the jokes you send us all from time to time, for a lot of stuff.

The army boy for helping me through a pretty difficult decision a while ago, and for being awake to text when everyone else is asleep…like normal people! For not gloating too much when you beat me at pool, for being there for me anytime day or night.

G-Noemi I may not see you very often at all, but I would like to thank you for thinking of me all those years ago after so long and getting back in contact with me, I’d like to thank you for inviting me to your wedding, knowing that it has been a long time since we last saw each other, for driving that little bit faster so I could see who drove the really nice car on the motorway, for keeping me up to date with you even though we’re miles apart.

Hoochie Mama, thanks for taking my weirdness on board and allowing the strange nickname, for helping me through some times when I was sure I would fail, being there when I needed support, helping me not to make some horrific clothing choices, for making me laugh as much as you do, for all the nights that turned into mornings just sat in my car talking for hours, for not stealing my fluffy jumpers when I knew you wanted to, for being as bad with money in HMV as I am…many things.

Car care guy thank you for being there to talk to whenever I need to, for being non-judgemental, for helping me to see both sides of every situation to make a rational decision, for introducing me to some amazing music, for making me tea whenever I come to visit, for looking after me when I’ve needed it, for putting up with my weird ways, for trusting me with things you wouldn’t tell just anyone, for letting me moan about things that have annoyed me, again there is a lot I could thank you for.

P!nk lover for letting me make myself at home in both of your homes, for being weird with me, letting me be apart of your wonderfully cute little boys life, for being the funny person that you are, for letting me talk to you about anything in confidence, for seeing situations through with me, for helping me when I’ve needed it, for confiding in me…much more could go here.

Lulu  for being the inspiration for Luluisms, for having such a good sense of humour, for talking to me about situations where I have not known what to do, for giving off such a ‘shiny’ vibe, for your amazing art, your opinions, your crazy little anecdotes, your flowers, your glittery aura… there is a lot to thank you for!

Blue eyed crazy cat lady for all the advice you give me, for listening to me without judgement, for letting me vent whatever is on my mind, for not thinking I’m a weirdo with some of the conversations we have, for helping me with many situations, for being one of the very few people I feel comfortable enough to tell everything to, for making me laugh, for the cocktails we have made, for the drunken nights spent helping each other, for confiding in me, for being as addicted to coffee as I am, for being as crazy as me and much more.

The French guy for still coming over to see me and my family even after you moved to France, and for never drifting away. Even if we don’t talk to each other for months, our friendship stands the tests of both time and distance, and I love that. So thanks for keeping me in your life, thanks for making me laugh, for talking to me into the early hours of the morning even with the time difference, for sharing points in your life with me, for making me believe that you will always be in my life, no matter what.

That last point about always being in my life goes for all of you, you’re stuck with me now because you have left footprints on my heart in concrete so to speak. There is much more I could say for all of you but this will have to do because there is so much I could thank each and every one of you for.

Image courtesy of Pinterest.

Thanks to myrandomness01 for the inspiration you gave me to write this blog.