The Schelbs

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!
~ Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

I've been thinking a lot about friendships today. Friendships are curious things. They can last a month or a lifetime. Friendships can be as shallow as a kiddie pool or as deep as an ocean.

Who decides how long a friendship lasts? Sometimes it's obvious why a friendship ends, but other times there is no such answer.

I have a friend who has been my friend longer than either of us remember. We've had fights, gone months without speaking, disagreed, given advice, reunited, survived moving far away from each other, and are still incredibly close! We are each other's accountability partner's and friends that will last a lifetime.

But today I've been thinking about past friendships. The relationships where there was a breakdown, and no resolution was found. Those friendships which seemed so strong, but suddenly broke off. Two very important people to me fall into this category. I haven't spoken to either of them in over a year. I miss them, but a restored friendship seems impossible.

People often refer to these type of people as "friends for a season". I don't like seasons...in terms of life that is (I adore seasons in terms of weather!) I wish sometimes that life would stay the same. Not to the point of being boring - I still want to learn and grow as a person and in Christ, but I don't like change. I mourn for these lost friendships.

Maybe I'm thinking of this all today, because the holidays are coming close and I'm far away from all thats truly familiar. I'm missing dear friends, missing the meeting spots, missing the old and comfy routines.

Either way, I'm grateful for my friendships - the long term and the short. The deep friendships and the shallow ones, of which I seem to have more of these days. Remember today to treasure your friendship because like Ecclesiastes says, two are better than one.