One is Silver, and the Other Gold

We all have friendship groups. Call them circles, clicks, posses…. whatever. They are “our people”, and know us better than anyone else. I have groups of friends that I have collected from high school, college, work, church and beyond. They all represent a part of my life and those friendships are what got me through the different phases of my life. We cherish each new set of friends and are always thankful for the ones that lead us to our current position.

Each group of friends knows you from a specific time and under specific circumstances. Its pretty likely that we have all changed a little (or a lot) through the years. The person you were in high school and the person you are today are probably a little different. Even the person you are at your job and the person you are on Saturday night may even be very different. But in each of those settings, we have our circle of friends. These circles have come to expect a certain person to show up… with the personality and attributes that they have come to know and love.
Its not like we are lying to one set of friends about who we really are. Its just in different social situations and in different phases of our lives we show a side of our personality that may not shine as brightly in different times or in different places.

What happens when the circles collide?

What happens when you are out with your “weekend friends” and your coworker shows up? What happens when you are out with an old college roommate and some high school friends show up at the same restaurant? What happens when you cross paths with an old boyfriend as you are out enjoying a date with someone new? Things can become awkward…

Bottom line: you are left realizing how much things have changed.

Its the changes that take place within ourselves that can be the difficult things to explain to the long ago friends. Its can be hard to explain why you are now vs how you were then… it was just a process. In reality, the changes are what have lead you to the new relationships in the first place. Most importantly, you have to acknowledge the changes in order to understand why your one time BFF is now just another phone number in your cell phone.

Part of me becomes very sad when I think about all of the amazing people that have held such an important role in my life… and are now not nearly as involved. But honestly, I have to be thankful for the role that they once played, and understand that just because I have changed doesn’t mean they can’t fit into my life anymore. The pieces are all still there…they may just go together a little differently now.

People don’t buy puzzles in hopes that they come pre-assembled. The fun is in trying to put it together. Same goes for our circles of friends…. Its the fully enriched, bigger picture that we are working towards.

Heartbroken The relationship I have with my dad is so complex,...

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