Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Friendship Sucks...

Think about it. Think about friends, friendship. It sucks.... at least to me it does. It's caused me a lot of heartache and thought lately.

In the past few months I've had some "friendship" moments. I wrote a blog post about a friend who blind-sided me. That really bothered me; still does.

Then, the other night at soccer, my daughter's team was playing the team one of my "best friend's" children are playing on (apparently... I didn't know they were playing this year). Their mom and I were chatting; we haven't talked in person since before Christmas. It was awkward!
sigh
 We used to be the best of friends. Through thick and thin. Through pregnancies. Then, life happened. Life with children. Life goes on.

sigh

See, since having children, my "friendship life" has dwindled. Life, rightfully so, has been all about breastfeeding & diapers, sleepless nights, visits to Grandma's house, juggling work and home life..... An occasional play date with my mom friends. A birthday party here or there. Everything friend-like became centred around our children.

With the thick-and-thin friend above, over time and five children between us, I wondered who this uber-cool, ultra-perfect, my-children-are-perfect, I-must-plan-a-picnic woman was! Wow! All of a sudden I was seeing a side to this friend I didn't recognize at all. The whole phoney Martha Stewart/ keep up with the Jones' act was wearing thin.
We had grown apart.

So... that makes me down two of my closest friends in a couple of paragraphs.

Then tonight I got a Facebook message from my oldest, dearest friend. (We haven't seen one another in maybe 2 years and we live only an hour away from each other.  We've only chatted on FB infrequently, lately.)  It brought tears to my eyes. I smiled.

See, we lead totally different lives now. There was a time when we would spend every single weekend sleeping over each other's houses; we told each other everything; we made it through some iffy-situations. We were two peas in a pod. And I hold onto every memory of our friendship from way back when, just as I'm sure, she does. I had tears in my eyes because as she spoke of my children (she has chosen not to have any) and the love I must have for them, she wrote about how she takes time to check in on my life through FB, checks out my pictures, watches my children grow. Only she would be able to pinpoint that aspect of my life in a few succinct words. Only she would be the one who would make me blink back the tears, smile a big smile, and be utterly grateful for the life with my children that I have. And all our friendship is now is memories.
sigh

That is why friendship sucks. I'm at a time in my life where friends and friendship take a backseat to family life. And friendship sucks because I'm a big softy and I hold on to all the memories with my once closest friends. I don't want our lives to change.... my views of our friendship to change. I don't want my friends to change. I don't want time to get in the way. I don't want time to change.
sigh
Friendship sucks.

5 comments:

  1. From your friend that will never take a back seat (backseating is due to family, I'm family so how could that work), you are a great friend and thank you for being there for me !

    Our friendship rocks.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Well said. A lot of people are thankful for your friendship no matter how infrequently life allows time for communication.

    ReplyDelete
  3. This sounds all too familiar to me... and I've been toying with writing a post about the changes in friendship I've experienced in the last year.

    I'm sorry that things have changed for you. I do understand the sighs.

    Unfortunately, we can never go back to the way things were. And if you're a sentimental person (like I am), it's hard not to get emotional thinking about those memories.

    But, people change, we change. I hope you find new friends that are right for you now.

    ReplyDelete
  4. @amotherworld
    thanks for the response. It's assuring to know it's not just me going through these friendship woes.... Though that seems weird to write because I don't wish them on anyone.
    I hope your woes/sighs will see brighter days as well!
    Xo

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for taking the time to read and comment on my post! ~Dawn