Friends, Buddies, Chums and Then Someone Quite Special

Friend: that one special person who makes life a bit easier by just being there and listening to your problems and difficulties. -- Friends by Katy

It has been many years, in Columbus, Ohio, that I had a dear friend Joe who meant the world to me. He was a bit of an edgy guy; although he was mayor of a small town, he had a bit of that bad boy about him. Nevertheless, I was able to see the heart and soul of my friend Joe and felt a compassion for him. I've always wondered what happened to him. He used to always tell me that you can count yourself very lucky if you can count your TRUE friends on your hand -- and if you could count your friends on both hands, that would be special.

Friends come and go. Today there is so much going on in people's lives that they don't always think of those people who have become a part of their lives. The internet has surely brought people together from all walks of life and cultures. For me, Squidoo has surely been a large part of my life for some three and a half years. Way too many hours to count have been spent writing lenses, visiting other lensmasters' lenses, mentoring, advising, suggesting. Hubby tells all our friends that I make probably $1/hour for all my time. He thinks I should be working for Squidoo. Well, maybe some day.

Recently, there had been a series of events that have been quite stressful to say the least. Each event taken in the context of that event, might not seem so stressful or eventful. However, it has been the sequence of those events which gave me pause the other day. Like the snowball effect. Some lensmasters would suggest that you write a lens, vent, share your difficulties, and ask for other lensmasters to come and visit. To me, I opted to do twitter updates to get immediate venting. And, I might have lost some twitter followers through that action -- those who just didn't understand or maybe thought I'd over-reacted. Sometimes things can escalate to be a Stop the Insanity moment. Do you know what I mean?

So, what do Friends, Buddies, and Chums got to do with this? Well, simple. There was one special someone who was quite sensitive and responsive ... who was THERE for me in my moment of OMG!

Friends, Buddies, Chums -- Oh My! Thank you friends, buddies, chums -- that special someone in my life. So the next time a friend, buddy or chum of yours is having a bad moment, please don't THROW them under that BUS! Reach out and offer them a hand. A friendly word, a show of support. Who knows, you might be needing that next!