Making Friends

"Make new friends,

but keep the old.

One is silver,

the other is gold."

from 'Make New Friends', a Girl Scout campfire song

Something I dreaded about moving to the west coast was having to make new friends... again. It doesn't matter how old/young, nice/outgoing you are, or how many times you have moved--it's hard to make friends!  It takes a lot of time to get to know someone, to trust them, and to make sure you won't scare them away with your weirdness--let alone find ways to meet new people in the first place! When people ask how I like San Diego so far I often respond with, "I love it! I just wish I could bring my friends here with me!"

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't like the people out in San Diego--we've been blessed with having some great friends from USUHS come out here with us and have met some wonderful people here already in Brian's program and in my grad classes--I'm saying it's hard to make strong, positive relationships in one place and then have to leave them. 

I was reminded of this a lot over the past few weeks. Two weekends ago I went back to DC and got to see my teacher friends and my cross country runners again. It was so wonderful to see them and honestly it re-energized my soul. I made some wonderful friends there for sure! And then I got to talk to some of my best girlfriends from college over the phone & texts, and they lifted my spirits too. I made some forever friends in college for sure! And just this weekend we celebrated Halloween with some new friends out here, and I grabbed brunch with another couple of them today. We're making some great friends out here too!  

I'm glad we're living in a time where it is easier to keep in touch--via email, Facebook, Skype, phone, and even blogs--but I miss my friends. And these new friends that we're making out here, I will miss them too when the Navy says it's time to leave again. 

But for now, I will go out of my comfort zone and make new friends. I will cherish the moments I have here in sunny SD with the awesome people we've met & will meet--and I will do my best to keep in contact with those back in Michigan, New York, and DC/NoVA--friends that I never want to forget. 

Silver and Gold. Thank you for being our friends and know that we love you guys, no matter where we are!