true
“So how are things going with you all lately?” I heard one mom ask another.
And the other laughed, “Are you sure that’s a question you really want answered?”
We need the friends who ask how we are and wait for the messy, convoluted truth. We need the friends who ask the questions that get more than one-syllable answers. But we also need the friends who will tell us something other than the cold, unvarnished truth.
“I’m a horrible artist,” the four-year-old bemoans. “I’ll never be able to draw anything!”
And her big sister reassures her, “You’re a good artist, Mary. I’ll help you draw a picture!”
Yes, we need the friends who will look into our eyes and speak what can be true, rather than the disparity that is present.
Oh, wow, Gretchen, this is beautiful. And true…. and all in so few words. Yes, we need friends who can see what CAN be true- I love that. Makes me think of Jesus when He called Peter the Rock long before Peter proved Himself strong, or when God called Gideon MIGHTY WARRIOR when he was just a scared farmer hiding out in a winepress to thresh his wheat. Such a call to Christ-like friendships! Thank you.
Yes! We need others to see the true in us when we don’t see it. 馃槈
Joy here from the Five-Minute-Friday party.
Are you sure that鈥檚 a question you really want answered? – I wish I had the nerve to respond this way when people ask me how things are going… Usually I just nod, smile and give an “acceptable” answer. Perhaps that’s unfair of me, but it seems to be what most people want to hear anyways.
I like that you point out that we need both kinds of friends – the ones who are bluntly honest and the ones who sugar-coat the truth, just slightly.
Keep writing and keep being a friend that others need.