Unfinished: A Personal Journey of Healing, Self-Discovery and Resilience

Today I am recovering from hosting our annual Christmas open house that we put on for our friends and neighbors.

So often in our busy lives, we lose touch with people that have enriched us and hold special places in our hearts. So, I decided a few years ago, that the first Sunday in December would be set aside to re-connect with old and new friends.

For a week prior to the event I am immersed in the kitchen, busy making new appetizer creations while my husband stands by, shaking his head and asking me why I do this to myself, it’s so much work!

I won’t disagree with that and to be honest, I have at times asked myself that very question. But yesterday, after our guests headed home, I knew with certainty why I do it.

The group that we invited, come from a large variety of backgrounds: nursing, radiologists, paramedics, teachers, police officers, health providers, sports technicians, single people, married people – you couldn’t find a more diverse conglomeration of individuals! The neat part was just watching everyone interact and simply enjoying conversations and appreciating the time together.

Everyone had left except for a couple that has been in my life for about 35 years. In fact, I introduced them to each other and they have been together ever since. We started to talk about my book that came out this past year and I asked her if she was surprised by anything that I had written about. We had shared a lot over the years and had seen each other go through difficult life events. So, no, she stated she wasn’t surprised by the content but when she read the part of what I had gone through in my common-law relationship with Dan, it made her sad; sad because in retrospect she felt like she should have done more to open my eyes to the abuse that she witnessed. She told me that she watched this strong-willed, independent individual, succumb to whatever Dan wanted and she felt like as a friend, she had let me down. Our conversation was from the heart, genuine, as open as a book.

I don’t ever want to take for granted friendships that have aged like fine wine. The one’s that you might not see for several weeks or months but when you do, you just pick up where you left off with no judgment, just appreciation of the time together.

True friends are treasures and sometimes they can know us better than we know ourselves. Yesterday, again reminded me that regardless of where we have come from or the mistakes we have made, that we are all here simply to help walk each other home.