Lasting friendships

Friendship is one of the greatest gifts we receive in life.  It turns ordinary moments into extraordinary memories.  Whenever a feeling or experience is shared with someone, it takes on a greater meaning.  It morphs into a drop of glue that binds you to the person you shared it with.  Some friendships last a lifetime and have countless shared moments binding them together; some last only a short time but stick with you forever.  None the less, every friendship is an irreplaceable addition to the composition that makes us who we are.

This has been a difficult week of goodbyes.  My first four months in Geneva have been a whirlwind of fun adventures with an amazing group of diverse friends from all corners of the globe.  The only problem with adventurous individuals is that they do not stay in one place for long.  Many of my new friends left this week to return to their homes or move on to new destinations.  It has been a bitter sweet reminder of what it means to live a life of travel and adventure.  It means living in a constant state of impermanence.

As I went into this week, I was feeling negative about the lifestyle I have chosen.  I had a few thoughts playing on repeat in my mind; "I am tired of starting over," "I am tired of always saying goodbye," "I am tired of losing the friendships that I have created."  Watching all of my friends pack up their Geneva lives and take off for new horizons brought up feelings of loss and loneliness.  When I expressed these emotions to one my friends she replied, "but if we had all stayed where we were before coming here, we would have never met in the first place."  This statement slapped me back into my reality.  I am blessed to live a lifestyle that puts me in the presence of so many interesting and loving individuals.  Although brief, every one of these friendships has been a gift of learning and sharing.

The most beautiful thing about friendships is that they continue on past your physical presence in a place.  The lasting connection that you share with your friends binds you forever to where you were and what you experienced together.  These connections are the glue that keep you bound to every different stage in  life and they are what transcend time and distance.

So even though I am sad to see my friends go, I am grateful to have these ties that will forever bind me to the moments we shared.  We will forever have the Jungfrau looming from above and reflecting off the pristine lake below, the warmth of the hamam followed by bubbling cheese fondu, the poem recital of Saint Nicholas, the warmth of the sun as we broke through the never ending fog above Lucerne, the taste of Belgian beer presented by an expert, the sangria made by a Spanish professional, the Sunday brunch with eggs to feed an army, the Swiss Thanksgiving that kept me full for a week, and of course the hike with cows and beers that started it all.  We may no longer be present but our memories always will be and I wouldn't give them up for a million years of stable consistency.

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!