All About Friendship

“Among Life’s precious jewels,

Genuine and rare,

The one that we call friendship

Has worth beyond compare.”

~ Shakerules

“A friend loves at all times…”

~Proverbs 17:17

Real friendship is a rare and precious gift, strong,

stable, yet fragile, and never to be taken for granted.

~Shakerules

“Friendship is the only cement

that will ever hold the world together”

-Woodrow Wilson

“Treat your friends as you do your pictures,

and place them in their best light.”

~ Jennie Jerome Churchill

“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art…

It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things

that give value to survival.”

~C.S. Lewis

“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies,

but the silence of our friends.”

~ Martin Luther King Jr.

“Friendship doubles your joys, and divides your sorrows.”

~ Shakerules

“Friendship without self – interest is one of the rare

and beautiful things of life.”

~ James F. Byrnes

“Give me one friend, just one, who meets

The needs of all my varying moods.”

~ Esther M. Clark

“The greatest good you can do for another is not just

to share your riches but to reveal to him his own.”

~ Benjamin Disraeli

“The only way to have a friend is to be one.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand,

nor the kindly smile nor the joy of companionship;

it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when

he discovers that someone else believes in him

and is willing to trust him.”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Friendship is always a sweet responsibility,

never an opportunity.”

~ Kahlil Gibran

“Friendship is neither a formality nor a mode:

it is rather a life.”

~ David Grayson

Don’t walk in front of me, I may not follow.

Don’t walk behind me, I may not lead.

Just walk beside me and be my friend forever.

~Shakerules

“If a man does not make new acquaintances as he

advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone;

one should keep his friendships in constant repair.”

~ Samuel Johnson

“Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?”

~ Abraham Lincoln

“You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist.”

~ Golda Meir

“Friendship is one mind in two bodies.”

~ Mencius

“The best way to keep your friends is not to give them away.”

~ Wilson Mizner

“Think where man’s glory most begins and ends,

And say my glory was I had such friends.”

~ William Butler Yeats

“Stay is a charming word in a friend’s vocabulary.”

~ Louisa May Alcott

“Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving,

make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!”

~ Amanda Bradley

“If we would build on a sure foundation in friendship,

we must love friends for their sake rather than for our own.”

~ Charlotte Bronte

“The person who tries to live alone will not succeed as a human being.

His heart withers if it does not answer another heart.

His mind shrinks away if he hears only the echoes of his own thoughts

and finds no other inspiration.”

~ Pearl S. Buck

“I am a big believer that you have to nourish any relationship.

I am still very much a part of my friends’ lives and they are

very much a part of my life. A First Lady who does not have

this source of strength and comfort can lose perspective

and become isolated.”

~ Nancy Reagan

“Friendship with oneself is all important, because without

it one cannot be friends with anyone else in the world.”

~ Eleanor Roosevelt

“A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good

egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked.”

~ Bernard Meltzer

“A friend is someone who sings your heart’s song

back to you when you have forgotten the words.”

~ David Coppola, Ph.D.

“Some people come into our lives and quickly go.

Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to

new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom.

Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon.

They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints

on our hearts, and we are never ever the same.”

~ Flavia Weedn

“Sometimes our light goes out but is blown into flame by

another human being. Each of us owes deepest thanks

to those who have rekindled this light.”

~ Albert Schweitzer

“You can make more friends in two months

by becoming interested in other people

than you can in two years by trying

to get other people interested in you.”

~ Dale Carnegie

“A friend is a gift you give yourself.”

~ Robert Louis Stevenson

“Friendship is like a bank account;

you cannot continue to draw on it

without making a deposit.”

~ Nicole Beale

“When you ask God for a gift,

Be thankful if he sends,

Not diamonds, pearls or riches,

but the love of real true friends.”

~Helen Steiner Rice

A friend is someone we turn to

when our spirits need a lift,

A friends is someone we treasure

for our friendship is a gift.

A friend is someone who fills our lives

with beauty, joy, and grace

And makes the whole world we live in

a better and happier place.

-Jean Kyler McManus

Remember that a little love goes a long way.

Remember that a lot… goes forever.

Remember that friendship is a wise investment.

Life’s treasures are people… together.

Realize that it’s never too late.

Do ordinary things in an extraordinary way.

Have health and hope and happiness.

Take the time to wish upon a star.

And don’t ever forget… for even a day…

How very special you are.

~Douglas Pagels Collection

Many people will walk in and out of your life,

but only true friends

will leave footprints in your heart.

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Two may talk together

under the same roof for many years,

yet never really meet,

and two others at first speech

are old friends.

~Shakerules

Laughter is not a bad beginning for a friendship,

and it is the best ending for one.

~Oscar Wilde

A friend is one who knows us,

but loves us anyway.

~Fr. Jerome Cummings

There is nought better to be

With noble souls of company:

There is nought dearer than to wend

With good friends faithful to the end.

This is the love whose fruit is sweet;

Therefore to abide within is meet.

~Mahabharata (B.C.400)

People need people and friends need friends

And we all need love for a full life depends

Not on vast riches or great acclaim,

Not on success or on worldly fame,

But just in knowing that someone cares

And holds us close in their thoughts and prayers-

For only the knowledge that we’re understood

Makes everyday living feel wonderfully good,

And we rob ourselves of life’s greatest need

When we “lock up our hearts” and fail to heed

The outstretched hand reaching to find

A kindred spirit whose heart and mind

Are lonely and longing to somehow share

Our joys and sorrows and to make us aware

That life’s completeness and richness depends

On the things we share with our loved ones and friends.

-Helen Steiner Rice

There’s a miracle of Friendship

that dwells within the heart,

And you don’t know how it happens

or where it gets its start…

But the happiness it brings you

always gives a special lift,

And you realize that Friendship

Is God’s most perfect gift.

-Jean Kyler McManus

I never came to you, my friend,

and went away without

some new enrichment of the heart;

More faith and less of doubt,

more courage in the days ahead.

And often in great need coming to you,

I went away comforted indeed.

How can I find the shining word,

the glowing phrase that tells all that

your love has meant to me,

all that your friendship spells?

There is no word, no phrase for

you on whom I so depend.

All I can say to you is this,

God bless you precious friend.

-Grace Noll Crowell

When you get what you want in your struggle for pelf,

And the world makes you King for a day,

Then go to the mirror and look at yourself,

And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn’t your Father, or Mother, or Wife,

Who judgment upon you must pass.

The feller whose verdict counts most in your life

Is the guy staring back from the glass.

He’s the feller to please, never mind all the rest,

For he’s with you clear up to the end,

And you’ve passed your most dangerous, difficult test

If the guy in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and “chisel” a plum,

And think you’re a wonderful guy,

But the man in the glass says you’re only a bum

If you can’t look him straight in the eye.

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,

And get pats on the back as you pass,

But your final reward will be heartaches and tears

If you’ve cheated the guy in the glass.

~Dale Wimbrow, © 1934

If your bad habit screams, “Me First,” Break it.

If your spirit cries with thirst, Slake it.

If for company you yearn

And someone else’s trust you earn,

When friendship’s offered in return, Take it!

Just place your hand in his or hers; Grip it.

If imagined slight occurs, Skip it.

See what’s needed, then give more.

And if a weed springs up, before

It chokes the path to your friend’s door, Snip it!

If gratitude or praise is due, Heap it.

If a secret’s shared with you, Keep it.

When a seed has taken root,

Beside your friend stand resolute,

And when the full-grown tree bears fruit, Reap it!

~Mary Sullivan Georgetown, TX, USA

We sit and we type and we stare at our screens,

We can’t help but wonder what all of this means.

With mouse in hand …we roam through this maze,

On an infinite search…lost in a daze.

We chat with each other, we type all our woes

At times we’ll band together to gang up on our foes.

We wait for somebody, to type out our name

We want recognition, but it is always the same.

Soon friendships are formed – but – why we don’t know,

But some of these friendships, will flourish and grow.

We give kisses and hugs, and sometimes we’ll flirt,

In IMs we chat deeply, and reveal why we hurt.

Why is it on screen, we are so easily bold,

Telling our secrets, that have never been told.

The answer is simple, it is as clear as a bell,

We all have our problems, and need someone to tell.

We can’t tell real people, but tell someone we must

So we turn to our ‘puters …and to those we can trust.

Even though it sounds crazy…the truth still remains,

Most of my “friends” have no faces…and odd little names.

~Rusty Black, ©1996

Friendship is a Golden Chain,

The links are friends so dear,

And like a rare and precious jewel

It’s treasured more each year…

It’s clasped together firmly

With a love that’s deep and true,

And it’s rich with happy memories

and fond recollections, too…

Time can’t destroy its beauty

For, as long as memory lives,

Years can’t erase the pleasure

That the joy of friendship gives…

For friendship is a priceless gift

That can’t be bought or sold,

But to have an understanding friend

Is worth far more than gold…

And the Golden Chain of Friendship

Is a strong and blessed tie

Binding kindred hearts together

As the years go passing by.

~Helen Steiner Rice

A simple friend, when visiting, acts like a guest.

A real friend opens your refrigerator and helps himself

(and doesn’t feel even the least bit weird shutting your

Coke/Pepsi drawer with his foot!)

A simple friend has never seen you cry.

A real friend has shoulders soggy from your tears.

A simple friend doesn’t know your parents’ first names.

A real friend has their phone numbers in his address book.

A simple friend brings a bottle of wine to your party.

A real friend comes early to help you cook

and stays late to help you clean.

A simple friend hates it when you call

after they’ve gone to bed.

A real friend asks you why you took so long to call.

A simple friend seeks to talk with you

about your problems.

A real friend seeks to help you with your problems.

A simple friend wonders about your romantic history.

A real friend could blackmail you with it.

A simple friend thinks the friendship is over

when you have an argument.

A real friend calls you after you had a fight.

A simple friend expects you to always be there for them.

A real friend expects to always be there for you!

~Shakerules

It is by chance we met,

by choice we became friends.

Friendship is a strange thing—

we find ourselves telling each other

the deepest details of our lives,

things we don’t even share

with our families who raised us.

But what is a friend?

A confidant? A lover?

A fellow email junkie?

A shoulder to cry on?

An ear to listen?

A heart to feel?…

A friend is all these things…

and more.

No matter where we met,

I call you friend.

A word so small yet so large in feeling,

a word filled with emotion.

It is true great things

come in small packages.

Once the package of friendship

has been opened,

it can never be closed.

It is a constant book always written

waiting to be read and enjoyed.

We may have our disagreements,

we may argue,

we may concern one another,

friendship is a unique bond

that lasts through it all.

A part of me is put into my friends,

some it is my humor,

some it is my listening ear,

some it is real life experiences,

some it is my romanticism

but with all, it is friendship.

Friendships forged are a construct stronger

than steel built as a foundation,

necessary for life and necessary for love.

Friends—-you and me

You brought another friend

and then there were 3.

We started our group

Our circle of friends

and like that circle

There is no beginning or end…

~Shakerules

You my friend

You don’t always show it,

but I know that you care.

You My friend

If I’d ever need you,

I know you’d be there.

You I’m glad you’re my friend.

Your smile makes me smile.

Your pain makes me hurt.

You My friend

I want you to know:

If you need me–I’m there.

make you happy, make you laugh.

You My friend

Sometimes you make me mad,

but I can’t stay mad.

You My friend

Sometimes I want to get away from you.

And sometimes there’s nothing I want more than:

to talk to you, to tell you about my day,

to hear about yours, to laugh with you,

to tease you, to share an inside joke,

that no one else would get,

to argue with you,

but know we’re just kidding..

You My friend

Do you remember the time when…?

There are so many times.

You My friend

Don’t ever lose the wonderful person you are.

Stay happy. Stay healthy. Stay you.

You My friend

I’ll never stop being your friend.

Don’t ever stop being mine.

You My friend

Just wanted to tell you:

I care.

~Shakerules

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