I digress again from my regular motherhood articles.
Can you still remember those pranks you played alongside your friend as kids?
Can you remember swinging, sliding and running around your school’s playground with your best friend?
You were inseperable and always shared in the truimphs and mischief together while growing up.
I can still remember my classroom located on the right wing axis of my primary school’s building. I barely even remember the faces of my classmates in primary 4, but one of those faces, I will never forget.
She was my best friend at that time. She was light-skinned, had big bright eyes and very long, thick and dark hair which I often admired. She was from a wealthy home and her presence had a way of revealing her background.
We both had dreams of becoming doctors and we actually put those dreams on paper. We would sit together and draw our hospital building, complete with all the units.
We would then talk about our drawings and hopes of seeing our dreams come to pass. Neither of us became doctors like we dreamt.
Years have passed and I do not even know where this childhood friend of mine is. The truth is that we both moved on from that phase in our lives. Many things have happened, changes have taken place and we will only always be a memory in our life’s journey.
You see, friends are like seasons. Some are summer, some are spring and some will show up in the winter season of your life.
There are some amongst us who have been lucky to have friends who stuck with them from their childhood till now. This I believe is a beautiful gift reserved for some and should be cherished.
My teenage years and adulthood gave me a new set of friends. Some of them I grew to love and some of them, I will never forget for different reasons.
I laughed, cried, played, prayed, dreamt and hoped with them. I will also always remember them for their uniqueness, sincerity, fears, passion, faith, frugality, selfishness, humility, laughter, compassion, integrity, talent, hopefulness, giving and courage.
Everyone of them taught me life lessons for my own journey. And I know that I also gave them lessons for their own journey.
A few of them have remained with me on this journey. Though we barely even see each other but our hearts and bonds remain. Each of us knows that we are only a call or chat away.
Some of them fell off like seeds blown away as the farmer planted. They came into our lives and slipped away quietly into our history, leaving us only with memories, good or bad.
But the truth about life is that friends will always come and go. Some will remain throughout your lifetime. Some will show up in one season of your life and reappear in another season of your life.
Some will stick with you and stand by you always. Some will hurt you and betray you. Some will make such an impact in your life and some you will certainly never forget.
You must know then that it is never really about their coming and going, but about how those friendships have shaped you and how you have learnt, grown and are a better person by virtue of your association, irrespective of your flaws and weaknesses.
So do you have a friend who has stuck with you through thick and thin?
Feel free to share your story with us.
Many Hugs,
Ufuoma
