How Can We Be Loyal Friends?
I found a wonderful post about loyalty over at http://pinkunderbelly.com (click on Loyalty on the right side. Nancy talks about feeling the loss of a favorite baseball player being traded and most of us can relate. I certainly can. Just when I get to know a player and develop an attachment to him (because he is a hunk or some other noble reason), he gets traded and the next new best thing comes on board. I wonder if a bit more loyalty from the teams to their players and the fans might be more important than the bottom line. Maybe our loyalty to the players should be considered.
And in Nancy's post, this brings up loyalty of friends when your like suddenly tanks. Sometimes–just when we really need friends because we have had bad news of one sort or another–some of our friends slip back into the woodwork. I've done it myself when one additional thing seems more than I can handle.
So–how can we be there for another person when our own coping mechanisms are low? How can we extend ourselves when we are hanging on by our fingernails? Can we learn to be empathetic without losing ourselves in the process?
facebook 
twitter 
Comments
These are important questions, Lois. I find sometimes that just sending a card through snail mail means more to someone than you think. In this electronic era, we are quick to shoot off an email, text or facebook message that we forget many who like the more personal touch of a letter. But sometimes even just a facebook direct message that we are thinking (and praying if you like) about that person can make a difference if we are too wound up to send something off through the post. Something is better than nothing. I would love to answer that I would bake for the person or cook a meal or do errands, but often that is too overwhelming. I hope these suggestions help. There are no easy answers. Thanks for carrying on Nancy’s discussion. xx
Good suggestions, Jan. I agree that we can’t always do the thing we would like to do, but if we remember how good it feels to just get a message, we can at least make that effort. And you are right, anything is better than nothing.