We cherish our friends.
How can we be there for them?
How can we make them happy?
How can we be close to them and stay close?
By being interested in them, curious about their stories
By listening to them and responding to what’s on their minds
By hearing what they need from us and how they’re feeling
By letting them know we are with them.
What can tell us what they’re thinking and how they’re feeling?
What they need from us?
What can we offer them that will make them happy?
Here are gifts that are valued by everybody
Gifts to be shared
Our best guides to what make us best friends
With thoughts on how our guides can show us the way
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Friends need the gift of Love
We can speak the Five Languages of Love:
• Make time for friends and be accessible
Give them our respect, our undivided attention, and our trust
Connect with them by being open --
By sharing our thoughts, our feelings, our lives
• Be there for them when they need help
Do things for them that let them know they can count on us
• Show our love and appreciation by being affectionate
Let them know that their friendship touches our hearts
• Reward their kindness with generosity
With gifts that let them know we appreciate them
• Encourage them by admiring their talents and achievements
Let them know that they matter, they are important, they are the best
Friends need the gift of Community
We can make friends feel welcome in our lives, so they know they belong
Welcome them into our circle of friends and family
“Treat friends like family and family like friends”
Friends need the gift of Health / Wholeness
We can have fun with friends that’s wholesome and disciplined
That makes happy without risking abuse, injury, or sickness
Without pressuring, or being pressured, to do things that aren’t good for us
Friends need the gift of Freedom
We can give friends space to think and choose for themselves
To express themselves as they are
To reciprocate (return) our kindness or not
Without judging them, blaming them, or pressuring them to be more like us
Friends need the gift of Worth
We must always practice good manners and be polite, to show respect
We can respect friends for things they do well but also for just who they are
By giving them our attention, our gratitude, and encouragement
By letting them know, when they are with us, no one is more important
Friends need the gift of Empowerment
We can let friends take the lead and be in control sometimes – take turns.
Let our friends win sometimes if we’re better than they are
Learn from our friends if they have something to teach us
Let everyone in on the fun and make it fair for everyone
Friends need the gift of Abundance
We can share the fullness and joy of life that’s in our hearts
The wealth that wants and needs to be shared
Let it join us in happiness when we are both feeling it
Or lift us up by sympathizing and caring for one another when we aren’t
Friends need the gift of Safety
We can make it safe for friends to trust us and play with us
Where it’s warm and welcoming
A place of tenderness and gentle loving kindness
Where they can be themselves without fear of being blamed and attacked
For who they are – personalities that aren’t like ours
Friends need the gift of Hope / Purpose
We can share what we see that leads the way forward
That renews our friends’ faith in themselves, their work, and their futures
Friends don’t let friends give up!
Friends need the gift of Beauty
Share the moments, the passion, the beauty, that inspire and move us –
Our triumphs against adversity, our discoveries
Stories, images, and music that make our spirits soar
That express the beauty, the spirit, of friendship
To all my shining stars, my friends
Who have the gift of Love and Abundance in their hearts
Doing their very best to share it
Thankfully.