investing in friendship? Is it worth it?

[apsurf]

I don't invest anything in female friendships because I don't want anything to come out of it.  At least not females in general that might be eligible for romance...  I'll invest in friendship with females that are the wives of my male friends, but I don't want any return on investment anywhere else. 

What about friendships with old ladies? They're harmless.... or so I hear. 

Some of my best friends over the years turned out to be old ladies...usually up in their 70's or so though.

[SippinTea]

Your post made me laugh, Coolguy, because it reminded me of something I'd put in my rambling thread a while back. Had to go look it up and copy it here, because it's precisely the point you made about reading warning signs you've seen before that makes me like this quote, goofy as it is.

The perfect quote for a gal like me that doesn't believe in fairy tales...

"True love comes quietly, without banners or flashing lights. If you hear bells, get your ears checked."  --Erich Segal

...oh, wait that's 

*grin* I still love it! 

[Nerd]

 

Right?

Once you've got reading signs down, the rest is just a waiting game.

It's a very entertaining one, actually...

[Sister_Mom]

I guess i must be the oddball gall when it comes to shopping.  I hate to shop.  Give me the list and I'll conqueror it but don't make me stay in the store half a day having no clue what I'm in there for.  Thats torture, not fun.

Yay! I'll join you on that one. I despise shopping, and no, I'm not kidding.

I always kinda figured I was a freak. Whoever heard of a girl that hated shopping?! LOL  Oh, well. Such is me.

Same here. 

Certain people can't understand why I want to go to WalMart, stick to my list and not just "look around". 

[SippinTea]

Ugh.  'Just looking' in Wal-mart (or Ross, for that matter) gives me a headache and I get pretty cranky. Too much clutter, too much mess, too many colors, and choices, and .....aaaarrrggghhh! My brain goes on overload.

[Sister_Mom]

For me, the perfect store would have what i want waiting at the door when I arrive so I can go on to more important things. 

[SippinTea]

Like heading for Starbucks or Ben & Jerry's to _Invest in a Friendship_!!!  Right? 

Oooo, did you see what a smooth move that was?  We're right back on track! LOL

Do I get a prize or something?

[Chseeads]

Your loss. Their loss.

Everyone loses that way.

I think it's more of a win-win situation that way. 

[SippinTea]

   Okay, I'll quit trying to convince you. It's obviously not doing any good, and you seem to be happily miserable in your own delusional world.

You've got Bella--what more do you need? LOL

[Nerd]

 


Jes' can't get enough of this popcorn...

[Chseeads]

Being friends with girls doesn't work.  Not for me anyways.

[Sister_Mom]

Well, of course not with that attitude young man! 

[SippinTea]

Okay, Seth. I'll take your word for it.

*throws hands up in the air in exasperation and walks away*

[Classicrambler]

I've noticed I tend to steer away from being very close friends with girls, just because something might happen...or if you meet someone, and something does happen, will she have a problem with all of your close friends that are girls? (And if so, does she have a point, or does it mean she's the wrong one?)

Perhaps this would explain why it's a lot easier to be friends with non-Christian types...hmm, hadn't thought of that before. I find it easier to strike up conversations etc with girls I know I won't be likely to be 'questioned' about later.

Oh well, I'm quite willing to change, but I think perhaps I've formed a habit.

[LarryTheCucumber]

true.

its simpler sometimes to invest in a friendship that has no chance of going anywhere, because there are no doubts in your mind as to where the boundaries are.

[Nerd]

I find it easier to strike up conversations etc with girls I know I won't be likely to be 'questioned' about later.

That bothered me, back when I cared about people jumping to conclusions. 
Now I tend to grin like a loon and launch into my best Dean Martin impression. 

"When an eel lunges out and he bites off your snout, that's a moray!!"

[SippinTea]

 

[Nerd]

That serves the dual purpose of severely cutting back on the people who get in my business, and possibly irritating the ones who do...

[newkris]

cute, very cute.

[Raecheal]

Is it worth it? Always!

[Sister_Mom]

I agree with that statement, but it would be much harder to say right after I've been hurt by someone I thought was a friend. No matter what our attitude is normally, a hurting usually makes us more cautious.
I'm so thankful God isn't that way. No matter how far one goes, or for how long, when we turn back to Him, His mercy and grace is always there.

[titushome]

I agree with that statement, but it would be much harder to say right after I've been hurt by someone I thought was a friend. No matter what our attitude is normally, a hurting usually makes us more cautious.

That's true - but just because someone hurts us doesn't mean he or she isn't a friend.

[Raecheal]

True enough!

[Sister_Mom]

That's very true. Just because we care about someone or love someone doesn't mean we're not capable of hurting that person. I wish it weren't true.
But as others have forgiven me for the disappointments and hurts I've caused, I should be able to forgive even moreso. I believe there would be less broken friendships, even less divorce if we could all have the attitude to forgive more than we have been forgiven.

On the other hand, there are those who are friends only on the surface and are not what they seem to be and we can find ourselves investing our hearts in a friendship that isn't genuine. Hopefully we can remain in touch with reality enough to realize that not everyone will be that way or that maybe we should allow more time for a friendship to grow before investing all.

We decide how much we will invest in friendships, but our decisions are probably more often based on the degree of past damage and how much of that we have held on to and that can vary from day to day. We just need to be careful to not allow each hurt to place another brick in a wall that we surround ourselves with. If we choose to forgive, we break each brick as it is created.
The question then remains, how much wall do we allow to remain in order protect ourselves from those who willingly choose to hurt us?

[MelodyB]