Friends,.

Why do we all have so much trouble making friends?  When I think about it, Mom's friends were all from her youth--ladies she went to school with, or associated with through church groups etc.  The neighbourhood friends were more often made through Daddy.  Is this something else we have acquired through Mom?

The friends I have were made through my very conscious decision to attend special interest groups, ( for my own sanity) and through conscious effort when it was pointed out, during retirement counselling that I had no social or support network heading into retirement.  I have no friends through my former work, although I know you have one or two, Beth.  I know we all have acquaintances--but this is not the same.

Today I spent several hours with four other art quilters, painting and dyeing.  This is a group I joined last fall, but I have trouble attending meetings as they are in the evening, and I no longer drive at night.  It was obvious that these four ladies have forged a strong friendship via these meetings, but I was functioning a little to one side.  Make no mistake, they were friendly and polite, but I felt a little out of sync with them.

But maybe this is why family is so important to all of us.  Thank Goodness!