The beautiful flower is the one that Brina gave me on Mother’s Day!

I have been thinking a lot lately about relationships and friendships.  Part of the reason this has been on my mind a lot is that our girls are going through the process of learning what it means to be a real friend and characteristics of friends.  They are slowly, and sometimes painfully, at least from a Moms standpoint, learning the value and qualities portrayed in a true friend.

As they wrap up their final year in elementary school and prepare to move up to Middle School they are realizing that many of the people they know now are going different directions.  They are are starting to understand that the friends they have known since Kindergarten are not going to the same schools.  Yes, they will see a few people they know next year, but many of the classmates, teachers, and faculty are going to new.  A new school, new location, and in some ways a fresh start to the next phase in their life.  Kids from their school are going in various different directions some due to location and others family decisions.

I was thinking about friendships and how our lives continually crisscross paths with individuals who become our friends.  Sometimes for whatever reason or due to circumstances our paths have to go separate ways, but that doesn’t mean your friendship is lost or that you’ll never see them again.  Other times for various reasons it is best to go separate ways.  As I was thinking about the conversations I have been having with my kids and ideas of how to encourage them through this transition I came across this little saying by Donna Yea that describes this part of the friendship journey well:

Life is like a journey.  We may be walking along a path with friends and then come upon a crossroad where we each must choose the road that is right for each of us individually.  At times we may find ourselves walking a path alone, but somewhere along the road we find new friends to walk with, friends to love, friends to grow with, friends to share with.  The path of life has many crossroads, and at each one it’s difficult to say good-bye and go our own separate ways, choosing the direction that is right for each of us.  But the memory of a friend will always remain, and there is always the chance that our paths will cross again.   – Donna Yee

Thankful for writers that can put words down in such a way that they can encourage my heart and let me know that this is normal.  Is it easy to go through this stage and process with your kids, no, but it is necessary.  Our support as parents and families is essential as our kids learn to grow and adapt to the changes they encounter while they are under our roof.  How we handle or don’t handle these little crossroads will make a big impact on our kids.  Let’s make this a positive experience for them.  One of the hardest times in my life was transitioning to a new High School, but I met some of the most amazing people and friends during those last couple of years that I may  have never met had I not been required to switch schools.  God is good and will provide those people at the right times and in the right moments.