closing out the year

2014 is coming to a close and 2015 is on us.  

at the end of every year, i count my blessings 

and share with those who mean the most to me - family and friends.

all of us have different degrees of friendships with different people.  there are those who are casual acquaintances, pinterest followers, twitter followers, etc.  there are friends whom we see every week and we talk sports (football), music, movies, weather, go out to dinner, go shopping  and if we work with them - talk job related items.  there are others who are in our life for a season and then we reconnect via social media.  

then there are the friends of the heart.  

heart friends can be young, old, long-standing, new, different, alike 

but they all have common elements.

"trust"
acrylic and ink
American folk Art

my heart friends love Jehovah God with the same kind of passion that i have.  

they are seekers and long for His presence.  

their relationship with God is not built around what they do, but who they are in God.  

the other attribute of my heart friends is unerring trust.  

they are my best friends and i trust them with my heart and my life.  

they love me when i am happy or sad, successful or in trouble  

they love me in spite of myself.  

we laugh, we cry, we plan, we have fun 

we eat good food and communicate 

we dream 

we share life.  

my heart friends communicate their love and support in special ways:  

they take me in when i need a place to hide

they innately know when i need prayer 

they celebrate my successes

they love me through my failures and are there to lift me up 

they walk with me through the shadow of the valley of death. 

they are friends who would lay down their life for me - and i them.

daughter and mother

as 2014 draws to an end - i am so grateful for my friends.   

no matter what kind of friendship we experience - acquaintance or heart friend 

thank you for being my friend - you make my life rich and meaningful.