An amazing thing happened the other day. A mom of 9 and a mom of 7 went out to the beach ALL.BY.THEMSELVES. I know, I still can't believe it. Now, mind you, out of those 16 kids, the youngest is 9 so everyone is quite capable of taking care of themselves (or each other in the case of the 9 year old). Even so, can you believe that the two of us, friends for 50 years this year, haven't been out together without kids for 25 years? Taking time with friends is so important, so why did we wait so long?
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We only live about an hour apart, too! The fact that we waited so long is really for a variety of reasons that I'm sure you're familiar with:
- Nursing babies
- Cranky toddlers
- Too many activities on the schedule
- No car available because of #3
- Not enough money to go anywhere
- Life just moves too fast to plan for things like that
I think #6 is really the biggest reason, although being pregnant and nursing a baby did take up a whole lot of those 25 years between the two of us!
Last week I just had this intense desire to be by a beach so my daughter suggested I call up my long-time friend. I figured it was a long shot but did it anyway, as I had little to lose.
At first we talked about how to organize the outing to the beach (about 1 1/2 hours away) with the kids in tow. After a few hours of trying to figure out who was available and how we would maneuver everyone else around, she suggested we just go ourselves!
Take Time with Friends
Can I just tell you it was pure bliss? The weather was perfect. We met up and drove together so, all told, we had six uninterrupted hours of talking, sunshine and eating. Oh, and a lot of traffic, but that just meant more talking time.
God must have known I needed that, given how everything aligned so easily, and for that I'm so grateful.
I can't stress what a breath of fresh air that was. This is where having a tribe is so important. Some days, when you just feel like you really need a change of scenery, or a shoulder to cry on, or someone to have fun with, having a friend you can call on makes a huge difference.
Can I implore you not to wait 25 years to schedule a one-on-one outing with a good friend?
I know it might be difficult to arrange, but give it a shot anyhow. Things might just work out when you least expect it. And believe me, time away with a friend can be just the attitude adjustment you've been needing.