friendship-part 2

First, let me say, to all of you that sent me messages and commented, thank you so very much for your kind words and support. I truly appreciate it.

With that said, I have been thinking that I should cover the WONDERFUL side of friendship as well. That previous post was about one bad situation I have been going through--I had to release my thoughts and feelings somewhere--why not here? But, I got to thinking...why focus so much energy on the negative? Why not focus on the positive?

The positive such as:

*The best friend that is also my husband, the one I get to go to bed with every night, and wake up next to every morning...the one that KNOWS it's ok to cancel the Housewives recording versus the Greys recording...the one that KNOWS I hate to do laundry?

*The best friend that is also my sister, the one it feels like weeks if I haven't spoken to her in a day and a half, the one that KNOWS what I'm going to say before I even think it?

*The best friend that has been by my side through the thick and the thin for YEARS...that shares humilating stories, tears, anger, the works...and never goes away.

*The best friend that has convinced the world that she IS my sister, that is there when you absolutely least expect it, at the most perfect time, to say the most perfect phrase. (AND...has FINALLY moved home!!!)

*The best friend that has lived 1000 miles away (South) for nearly 10 years that will still SNAIL MAIL me just to say "hi...love you...thinking of you."

*The best friend that has lived 1000 miles away (North) that texts me, calls me, drives those 1000 miles to be with me on one of the biggest days of my life...

*The best friend that is also my mother (enough said).

What about the family (both that I was born into and that I have acquired)--the good friends--and even the acquaintances? Why focus on one heartbreak when there are SO MANY JOYS.

My life is so filled with blessings I am overwhelmed thinking about it.

Last night, on the television show, Glee, there was a song that I felt was just for me. The episode last night was very emotional--but I felt as though it was sung just for me...straight to my heart and soul.

I indeed have Bridge(s) Over Troubled Water. And I thank God every day for it...

When you're weary
Feeling small
When tears are in your eyes
I will dry them all

I'm on your side
When times get rough
And friends just can't be found
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

When you're down and out
When you're on the street
When evening falls so hard
I will comfort you

I'll take your part
When darkness comes
And pain is all around
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

Sail on Silver Girl,
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way

See how they shine
If you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind.

friendship

While we may say or do things that we regret, it is the things we don't say or do that we'll never forgive. Friendships work two ways, my friends, and when one is giving and giving, and never receiving, it gets nearly impossible to hang on. Is it time to let go? Well, at this point, time will only know, but the heart can take only so much breaking.

Mama texted me, "make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver and the other gold (for 20 years)." True. I know. But...what happens when the "old" blows you off time and time again, cancels plans time and time again, then turns around and makes YOU out to be the bad guy because YOU won't cancel committments you've made to other people, simply because it is more convenient for said friend (and there is still no guarantee said friend will actually show up if you do cancel other plans)? ...sorry for the ridiculously LONG run on sentence, but I just kind of don't care about grammar at the moment...

Sidney J. Harris --"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable."

My heart is breaking. I've neglected my husband, my homework and countless other things just to continue to get my heart broken.

So I ask you, my blog friends, when is enough enough? Will I regret holding on or letting go?


From Search Your Love
It's one thing to start a friendship, it's quite another to maintain it, to keep it, to stay on what Lewis called "the same secret path." Even strong friendships require watering or they shrivel up and blow away. That's why George Bernard Shaw touched an exposed nerve when we read the words he scribbled to his friend Archibald Henderson: "I have neglected you shockingly of late. This is because I have had to neglect everything that could be neglected without immediate ruin, and partly because you have passed into the circle of intimate friends whose feelings one never dreams of considering."


It's so easy to take good friends for granted. And in a sense, we should. Like a comfortable pair of gloves, old friends wear well. But friendships that suffer from busyness and overfamiliarity can't afford to be neglected too long. They need renewal. If you want and need to keep true friendship alive and well, please, consider and think over a list of the most important qualities offered to help you. Probably it will help you to understand why you and your best friend haven't called up for ages, why you're getting embarrassed while being asked "Whom are you going to have fun this weekend with?" Like Shaw, you may neglect your intimate friends from time to time, but if you fail to cultivate these qualities—loyalty, forgiveness, honesty, and dedication—you can't expect to keep true friends.

The bold emphasis is mine--because I feel, this is where we have come. Are we such intimate friends that our personal feelings are the last to be considered?

Sorry for such a depressing post--but this has been weighing heavy on my heart for about a month now, and I just can't cry or yell or emotionally hole up anymore...Tim might try to leave me. ;)

(ok, that last bit was a joke, but bless his heart you guys!)

So, thank you, for letting me get this off my chest.

sugar glasses

Ok. Post #2 today is about a super cute website that paints super cute wine glasses! The artist is my friend James that I mentioned in today's earlier post.

I have been lucky enough to receive several of Sugar Glasses hand-painted masterpieces, and figured I'd share the website with you all.

It is called SugarGlasses.com and ya'll she is SUPER talented. I have a plate she made for me in college and then four wine glasses she painted for Tim and I when we got married. She customizes orders--and I have yet to find something she can't do (I wish she would display some of her canvas paintings she did back in college!). She does REALLY cute Razorback decorations (I used to hunt her down to help me with my coolers) and she's good at Greek inspired items as well (for those young pledges or old sorority gals in your life).

You can click HERE to go to her link...or...I have it listed in the side bar under the header "Other web spots I like to visit."

She uses a high-quality paint (and cooks the glasses) to make them dishwasher safe! For your viewing pleasure, the glasses she painted for me and Tim when we got married (yes, the glass bases have fleur-de-lis on them--be still my heart!):