The Evolving Gift of Friendship
Friendship is one of life’s most precious gifts. Some friends walk with us through decades, while others join us for just a chapter or two. Both types hold value, and each brings its own unique beauty. It’s rare and remarkable to have friends who know your past and love you not because of it, but in spite of it. They’ve witnessed your growth, your setbacks, and your comebacks and they’ve stayed. That kind of shared history is a quiet kind of power.
Then there are the friends who come into your life in later seasons. Maybe during the chaos of raising kids, the endless string of soccer games and school pick-ups, or now, in the quieter space that follows. These friends meet you where you are. They help you notice and appreciate the moment you’re living, right as you’re living it.
As a married couple, friendship takes on even more layers. Women’s friendships tend to run deep. They are often anchored in emotion, empathy, and the unspoken understanding that you don’t have to fix anything to be a safe place. I’ve had a friend since first grade who’s still in my life. When I was transitioning out of Rule29 and trying to figure out what was next, we sat down to talk. After knowing each other for 45 years, we realized we barely knew what the other did professionally. That’s not where our friendship lived. It lived in the more human places of our hearts, our doubts, our hopes.
Still, in that moment, she connected me to my next job. Not because of what we talked about for years, but because she knew me. It wasn’t about networking. It was about relationship. That connection shifted something for me. It reminded me that different styles of friendship, whether rooted in shared activity or quiet understanding, each have something to teach us.
Men’s friendships, at least in our experience, are often built around shared experiences-work, sports, common interests. But if you’re lucky, as a couple, you find other couples who blend it all. People who know your stories, your kids, and your quirks. People who will sit with you when things fall apart and cheer with you when they come together.
That’s where we are now. I have friends I’d call family, and so does Justin. We have couple friends who make us better individually and together. Friends who love our kids, ask about them by name, and root for them just as hard as we do. That’s a joy I don’t take lightly.
Looking back on all the friends who’ve been part of my life, those still near and those who were just for a time,I feel overwhelming gratitude. And honestly? Excitement. Because I don’t think we’re done creating friendships. Each one, past or present, adds something vibrant to the picture. And I know the best ones always show up just when you need them most.
Thanks for reading and sharing this space with us. Here’s to the friends who stay for a season, a lifetime, and everything in between.
– Sarah