Thursday, August 07, 2008

Friends, Friends, Friends!


Do you remember that I Love Lucy episode where Lucy is feeling all alone because everyone forgot her birthday and so she is sitting on a park bench crying her eyes out when a marching band of people comes along to cheer her up? They called themselves the “Friends of the Friendless” and quickly cheered Lucy up and even got her to march in the band. I always loved that episode, for reasons of humor of course and not because I think a band should go around looking for sad and lonely people. (Creepy.) But if there were such a band for the Friends of the Friendless, they’d never stop for me, because I have many, many wonderful friends.

This picture is of just a handful of my dearest friends. Six years ago we started having lunch together as friends and neighbors and today we still do our best to get together once a week (during the school year at least) and have lunch. (Can you guess by the picture who was hosting this day?) Oh sure, we have 22 children between the 5 of us (of the 5 pictured here, even more when you add a couple other gals) but that never stopped women from getting together and building bonds of friendship. Ok, so one of us moved to Washington but she still gets together with us often.

We swap babysitting so we can volunteer at school, we take each other meals when babies are born, we travel together, we take each other scrumptious chocolate cakes for birthdays, we let each other know when there is a good sale on kids clothes, we can peaches, pears, and make jam together, we decorate, sew, and paint each other’s houses, started a vegetable and food co-operative in the neighborhood, and even organize each other’s messy pantries and closets.

We all value education and are either working on our degrees, have college degrees, have master degrees, and one is even heading to law school in the fall! Some of us work all the live-long day at home and some of us work all the live-long day at home and outside the home. We are all different as can be and that’s why we’re such good friends. Who wants to be friends with someone just like you? No thanks, that’s boring. I can talk to myself if that’s what I wanted.

We are all women who know—we know the purpose of life, we know the truthfulness of His Gospel, and we work super duper hard to forward His work at church and within our homes. We’re obviously very religious, but not in a weird-o Bible thumping, wear-your-religion-on-your proverbial sleeve kind of way. We believe in families and know that families are the foundation of any successful society. (Hence all the children.) Being a mother hasn’t put any of us in shackles, but rather has taught us how much the individual matters. Who doesn’t want to be loved and cared for?

And if you are tired just reading this blog, imagine how tired we all are at the end of the day. No wonder we get together for Kelly’s Thai Noodle Wraps or Robyn’s Basil and Herb Chicken. No wonder we love each other so much.

9 comments:

Unknown said...

Hooray, hooray for lunchladies days! Paige says you may even sometimes brown bag it up to the BY. I hope so, because I can't think of living without our regular visits. What a great blessing you all are. And it all started with one AMAZING visiting teacher named Cynthia.

jessica said...

There is nothing like having good friends who get you and support you. That's what I love about the gospel, everywhere I have ever lived I have been able to find those relationships.

Oh and I love YAZ! I wore out this tape in High School! You have great taste in music!

Brittany & Barry said...

You are so great, Cynthia! I love your humor, writing, taste in food, taste in most things, for that matter...I'm glad to know you!!

Anonymous said...

I was always a bit jealous of your lunches ;-) I miss you ladies!

Casey said...

HEY! I want to have lunches too. I guess I need to work on some of these ladies around here. What fun for you. I wouldn't dare have anyone look at my pantry, let alone organize it. Lucky girls, you are.

Ilene said...

Send me some jam. I don't have such cool friends in my new town.

Anonymous said...

Lunch ladies SAVED MY LIFE! I have learned so much from these amazing women without one spark of competition. Truly remarkable. I don't know that this will ever be replicated where I am. :)

Liz

Cynthia said...

That's ok Liz. You don't need anyone new in Washington. You just need to come visit Utah more often. :)

Anonymous said...

I hated the Friends of the Friendless episode because Lucy became such a whiney ingrate and those FOTF people were creepy.

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...