Friendship Is Forever

It’s already 3;12 in the morning but I am still wide awake. I just cannot get myself into sleep yet. I was just thinking of what happened and transpired yesterday. Yesterday, I went to visit my friend in his parish in Highlands, New Jersey. His parish is a forty minute drive from my place. It’s been almost two months now since I saw him last. But we talk on the phone quite regularly to communicate. My friend is a childhood buddy whom I lived with and grew up together in the seminary. We have had a long history of friendship dating back when we just entered high school in the seminary till we got ordained. After some years in our ministry, however, we lost personal contact and communication. We met again when we were sent to Rome to study. After I came to the US, he stayed in the Philippines. He has held big and important assignments in the Diocese as well as in the Ilocos Region. He was one time Rector of our regional seminary in the North, an assignment he will be put in charge again when he goes back. Currently, he is here in the States for a year of Sabbatical leave and rest.

To have true friends whom you can count and depend on is one of the most treasured commodity. Nowadays it is not easy to find someone whom you can really call a true friend in the real sense of the word. In this world you meet all kinds of people with all kinds of baggages. If you don’t find people who are so “mababaw”(shallow)and immature , then you find people who are simply grabbers and opportunists. But to find someone who has some solid, Christian values, a mature person, somebody who is trusting and honest, is a real gem. My friend is indeed a real gem, if I may say it that way. It’s always a joy to be with him and share our experiences together. We have gone through a lot when we were growing up together in the seminary, so when we were just starting in our ministry. But through thick and thin, we stood side by side together. We have had our differences in our opinions and ideas; we have had our own personal battles and challenges to face. But, through it all, our friendship has remained strong and solid. We can depend on one another for almost everything. Maybe this is what real friendship is all about. I thank God everyday for giving me such a wonderful friend.

As I sit here thinking about my friend and savoring our friendship together, it made me reflect about the meaning of what true friendship is. I was just reading an article lately on this topic written by CD Mohatta. This writer captures very eloquently of what true friendship is all about. He says:

“We all have friends. A lot gets talked about friendships. Everyone wants a true friend, and many of us believe that we have a friend who can be called a true friend. What kind of relations do friends share? When can we call a friend a true friend, and when can our friends take us as their true friend. After a romantic relationship, friendships are the most important relationships we can have. Though all of us have family and distant family, most of us rely on friends for advice, comfort and inspiration. How do we define a relation that can be called as one of true friendship?

The very first sign of a very good friend, not necessarily a true friend is that we are not worried about courtesies. You will call your friend at any hour and talk without any thought of time in your mind. Similarly, whenever you need support, you will call a very good friend and ask him/her to help you out. They expect the same from you. Another important trait of such relations is that we are not much worried about exposing ourselves. We speak about everything in our mind without worrying about what our friends will think. We are sure that they will take our talk in the spirit it was made. We are unguarded and open with friends in our talk.

A true friend is a little more than a very good friend. A true friend will support you even if it hurts his/her own interest. A true friend will understand your motives and needs and will be with you without any analysis or criticism. A true friend will come forward to help without any request and be with us in need without showing it or expecting anything in return. With a true friend, you can be sure that you will get help to the extent possible by him/her. Nothing will remain unturned. A mother is a true friend of her children. If we share such relations with an adult we can say that we are true friends.

A true friend makes no excuses of having work or appointments or anything but will be with you whenever you need him/her. In your hour of desperation, a true friend will support you even if the whole world opposes you. A true friend is not an opportunist. A true friend means to have someone who is like mother, as I said earlier. Instead of having hundreds of good friends, if you have a true friend, treat yourself lucky. If you can also become a true friend of someone, you will be blessed, because it is much easier for all of us to expect but very difficult to give. Be a true friend yourself first.”

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=CD_Mohatta

When things are rough in my life, or when I have some problems and trials that I face, I ran up to my friend to seek his advice. If I call him and say that I wanted to see him, he is always there ready to see and listen to me. There was never a time when he didn’t want to see me. A true friend is someone who gives time for you. A song says, “That’s what friends are for.” In good times and bad times, he/she is always there for you.