Women' Spiritual Journey

FRIENDLINESS
Friendliness is reaching out to others with warmth and caring . It is the willingness to be an intimate companion. Friendship is essential to our souls. We value ourselves enough to know that we deserve true companionship. We attract others by what we are willing to contribute. What we give we get. The presence of a friend can soothe us , unleash our laughter, amplify our joy and diminish our sorrow. Friends are compassionate witnesses to one another's stories. We share our time, our attention, our love, and above all ourselves. We look upon strangers as friends we haven't yet met. Friendliness is the best cure for loneliness.

" I don't need a certain number of friends, just a number of friends I can be certain of". Alice Walker

The Practice of Friendliness

• I make others feel welcome.
• I trust that I am worthy of companionship.
• I have compassionate curiosity.
• I take genuine interest in others.
• I share my laughter and my tears.
• I invest my time and attention in friendship.
  I am thankful for the gift of Friendliness. It makes me a true companion.

Things to Ponder:

1. Share a time you reached out to a stranger or responded to one with warmth and caring. Was this person someone like or unlike you? Can you see yourself reaching out that way to someone very different? Can such a move, in a small way, begin to help heal some of the divisions in our country? 2. What does it take to be an intimate companion? What do you want in one? Are you able to offer those same qualities?

2. Is there someone whose path you cross who interests you that you haven’t yet befriended? How might you make a start? Are you open to such opportunities? Do you notice them when others approach you?

3. Loneliness is, in some ways, feeling stuck. How might you cure it with friendliness?

4. What does it mean to have ‘compassionate curiosity’? Do you have it? What would it look like if you did?

5. Why is it important to share both laughter and tears?

6. Does the busy-ness life get in the way of making and keeping friendships? Are we busy to avoid those sorts of relationships? Why? How could we make more time for friendships?