I LOVED your letter last week, both because it was intellectually really interesting (what DOES make a good friend?) and also because emotionally, it was super rewarding (WE are good friends).

The youth group kids said that a good friendship is made of:  trust, liking the same things, time, and knowing what each other is thinking.  We have those (though not as much time anymore….)!  And your addition of “mutual commitment” is perfect.  I agree!  There’s a difference between liking someone and getting along and Being Someone’s Friend.  For me at least.  I like people, and I like the people I’m meeting here in Greece, but they are not friends in the way that you are my friend.  You are Friend 2.0, hahaha.  And the difference is: commitment.

That’s the main reason why I consider you my best friend.  I choose you!  Even though we are pretty much always in different locations or in different life stages, I choose to invest in you and love you and care about you.  And you do the same for me.  Honestly, it would be all too easy to just let our friendship deteriorate.  SAD, but easy.  Because really, a lot of things are working against us!  But I value your friendship so much because we’re choosing to stay close even when it might be easier not to.

It seems kind of fitting that I’m sending you this letter on the Thursday before Valentine’s Day, because I totally agree with you about friendship being a marriage, kind of.  Maybe all relationships, the strong ones anyway, are like a marriage, because it’s the commitment that makes them strong.

So with that in mind, here are my Friendship Vows (is this beyond cheesy??  Oh well):

• I promise to support your ideas and projects, whether they’re about parenting, blogging, or starting a new business.
• I promise to do what I can to make your dreams a reality.
• I promise to laugh with you and to cry with you.
• I promise to fight anyone who says anything bad about you, which won’t happen because everyone agrees you are amazing.
• I promise to remind you that feelings are okay, even when they hurt.
• I promise to take goofy pictures with you and cherish them always.
• I promise to write you a letter every other Thursday!

I love you dearly, Lindsay Beth!  I can’t wait to see what our friendship looks like twenty years from now!

Love,

Tricia