I recently joined a fabulous group of women for a global writing challenge—Gail from Is This Mutton (UK) Deb from Deb’sWorld (Australia), Mary Katherine from MK’s Adventures in Style (USA),  Penny from Frugal Fashion Shopper (UK), Australian blogger Sue Loncaric from Women Living Well After 50, Leslie Clingan from Once Upon a Time and Happily Ever After and Marsha from Marsha In The Middle. On the third Thursday of every month we’ll respond to the prompt “Tell Us About XXX” which could cover any subject matter. It could be a blog post with opinions or memories; a poem,  photos, anything at all. Last month, the challenge was The Road Not Travelled and was prompted by Mary Katherine. This month, Penny chose the fabulous prompt of…Friends and Friendships.

In my 48 years, I’ve learned friends and friendships are like spices in life–each one adding their unique flavour. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane and meet some extraordinary souls who’ve coloured my world.

The Timeless Bonds: Everyone’s got that one friend, right? Mine’s Emma. Since we were 6, we’ve been on this wild ride. Distance couldn’t break us–snail mail turned into social media, but our connection stood strong.

The Dynamic Duo: Sarah, my partner in crime for around 12 years. We may not have decades behind us, but laughs and adventures? We’ve got that covered. And recently, we clicked with our mad American pal, Laura–different but an absolute blast together!

The Ebb and Flow: Friends in Portugal, friends who moved back to the UK–it’s just life doing its thing. We cherish our time and roll with the changes. Each friend brings a different flavour, like chapters in a book.

Don’t forget the fantastic pals who stuck around here. Our neighbours aren’t just neighbours; they’re practically family. Watching their kids grow into young adults is like having an extended family next door. And the older couple who owned the apartment next door to us when we had our very first home together? We clicked with them so much so that we ended up going on lots of holidays together, Canada (twice), the Azores, Ireland, Scotland…they are so dear to us, despite the fact that they never actually lived here. The Scottish couple and the Italian couple, and the Scottish-Belgian couple who live just a little further away but they all mean the absolute world to us.

Although we are not religious in any way, hubby and I are deeply spiritual, and so we’re grateful for a special circle of friends who we feel a deep connection to, believing our bond extends beyond this lifetime, but I won’t go any further into that right now!

And the mix of friends and friendships from all over–Portugal introduced us to a melting pot of nationalities. Every friend brings something unique to the table. We have friends from Portugal, UK, Denmark, Holland, Zimbabwe, Germany, Switzerland, USA, France, Belgium, and so on.

Oh, and all the friends who started as clients for my hubby’s home renovation business? They’ve become mates. Started with fixing things, ended up sharing laughs over dinner. You never know where a friendship might sprout.

The Global Squad: Now, let’s talk about the incredible women I’ve ‘met’ through blogging. Laurie (who I was thrilled to meet up with a couple of years ago, pictured above, and who I consider my YouTube mentor), Shelbee, Gail, Greetje, Nancy, Marsha, Catherine, Jacqui, Daenel, Mireille, are just a few of these amazing women. We might not have met face-to-face, but the support, camaraderie, and shared experiences make them part of my friend circle.

Thinking about friendships, I just feel really thankful. Every friend, whether they’re around or part of my online world, has made an impact. Life is all about these connections–no regrets, just grateful for the paths taken and the friends who’ve been there with me. While we appreciate this mix of friendships, let’s also remember the great friends we’ve lost, whose memories will always stay close in our hearts.

And let’s not forget the crucial bond we often overlook–the friendship with ourselves. I’m a firm believer that loving yourself like a best friend is key. Taking the time to genuinely enjoy your own company is not just healthy but necessary. Personally, I adore moments of solitude, not all the time, of course, but having that time for myself is a vital part of maintaining balance and self-love.

So, here’s to the tapestry of friends and friendships–diverse, colourful, and uniquely ours. Cheers to the friends who’ve come, stayed, and enriched our lives. Now let’s see how the other fabulous women in this group interpreted this amazing theme of friends and friendships…

Marsha wrote about her golden friends in a post in 2022.  She has used parts of that post to talk about the definition of friends and friendship. https://marshainthemiddle.com/

Jill has explored the changing nature of friendships throughout our lives and the importance of friends as we age. www.grown-upglamour.com

For this month’s lovely prompt of Friends and Friendship, Debbie is sharing a story from a few years ago, all about friendship and making lifelong friends in the world of blogging.  www.debs-world.com 

It’s not always easy making friends in later life. Gail from Is This Mutton has some ideas on how to find your next BFF. www.isthismutton.com

Penny looks back at friends she had during her childhood and reflects on how friendships change over the years. She notes how important her current friends are and how we all communicate now as opposed to the past. https://frugalfashionshopper.co.uk/

For Sue from Women Living Well After 50 friendship has no age barrier.  For the Friends/Friendship prompt Sue discusses ‘Why Age-Gap Friendships’ are a vital part of Ageing Well. Why Age-Gap Friendships are a vital part of Ageing Well – Women Living Well After 50

Mary Katherine reflects on long-friendship gold, friendships lost, and new friendships at midlife. Find her at https://mksadventure.com

Now, as I won’t be posting tomorrow, let’s get on with the Neverending Style link-up from today! What special friendships do you have? And what have you been up to lately?