Friday, July 18, 2008

Come, Walk With Me

Will you walk with me,
When days are glad
And the sun is glowing high upon the hill
Will you dance with me
When I need to laugh
Eternal joy my life to fill.

Come, will you walk with me upon the way....
To wander along
This course of life today
Seeing all to see
And dreaming as we do
Delighting in the warmth of dawn
Fresh as the morning dew.

Come, will you walk with me....
Stepping out the ups and downs
As my friend
As I will walk with you
Wandering through life's doors
Travelling twisty turns, caring as we go
Yet loving all the more.

Come, walk with me
With oneness as our goal
As we share God's love in all we do,
But, if days may come we may not understand
The pain of valleys all unknown
Then we will kneel to pray
To the One who knows.

- Soft Whispers from Derry's Heart Poems © 2005

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Stay As True Friends

When miles come in numbers
it may seem a dream
of friendships that blossomed
that now seem supreme.

For two found a moment
as echoes they heard
that are now as miles
with just written word.

The friendships of theirs
came deep from within
as they followed their hearts
then time and agin.

The miles came quickly,
but yet they seemed slow,
for when they were together
they just didn't know.

The friendships still strive on
as miles come conclude
with letter after letter
as a friendship prelude.

For now still the friendships
of them each today
are holding fast together
in a lovingly way.

Love comes in packages
that miles can't destroy,
as they stay as true friends
as a girl and a boy.

So miles cannot dissipate
what's truly alive,
because it's the memories
that keep them alive.

©By Bill Pearce

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Inspiring Friendship Story - Ruby's Roses

The neighborhood kids nicknamed the cranky old couple Crazy Jack and Ruby Rednose. Rumor was that they sat inside and drank whiskey all day. It was true that Jack and Ruby Jones preferred to keep to themselves. About the only words we ever heard from them were "Keep out of our rosebushes!"

The rosebushes were seventy beautiful floribunda shrubs that served as a fence between our house and theirs. The rose fence took quite a bit of abuse, since our house was the neighborhood hangout. I was eleven at the time and the oldest of six active girls. We should have played our softball games elsewhere to avoid hurting the roses, but we secretly enjoyed irritating Crazy Jack and Ruby Rednose.

Jack and Ruby had a son whom we nicknamed Crazy Jack Junior. He was due to come home from Vietnam. We heard he had been discharged because of a nervous breakdown. The neighborhood had thrown a big party for Jimmy Brown when he came home from the war, but no one offered to have a party for Crazy Jack Junior.

The day Crazy Jack Junior was scheduled to come home, we had a neighborhood softball game in our yard. Johnny McGrath was trying to catch a fly ball. He stumbled over one of Ruby Rednose's thorny rosebushes and fell on top of several more. Boy, did he yell, but the roses were the ones that really suffered. From my vantage point at second base, it looked like about ten of them were damaged pretty badly. Johnny's timing was terrible, because as he lay there swearing at the roses, the Joneses' pickup rolled into the driveway. The truck screeched to a halt and Crazy Jack Junior sprang out. He ran full speed toward Johnny.

"You little punk!" he screamed. "Look what you've done to our family's roses! You've always been trouble. I'm going to fetch my gun and shoot you!"

The next few minutes were a blur. The neighborhood kids ran for their lives. Ruby and Jack tried to restrain their son. He continued to yell threats and profanities. Ruby wasn't my favorite person, but I felt sorry for her when I saw her tearfully pleading with Crazy Jack Junior. Finally, they coaxed him inside.

Meanwhile, my sisters and I tore into our house. Breathlessly, we told Mom what had happened. She put down her sewing and scolded, "Girls, I have told you not to play softball near those bushes. Come outside right now and help me fix them."

"Mom, we thought you didn't like the Joneses," we protested. "They're mean to us. Besides, Crazy Jack Junior might shoot us."

Mom just glared at us. We followed her outside to help mend the rose fence.

While Mom examined the damaged roses, my sisters and I hung back, plotting how to get out of the thorny job. As we whispered back and forth, the Joneses' garage door opened and Ruby slowly walked out. She looked sad. And it wasn't her nose that was red, it was her eyes.

Ruby walked over to my mother. The two women stood looking at each other through the new gap in the rose fence. We girls held our breath, waiting to see who would shout first and what terrible things would be said. How much trouble would we be in when it was all over?

Suddenly my mother stepped forward and hugged Ruby. "I'm glad your son came back home," she said gently. "It must have been a horrible experience in Vietnam. We're sorry about the flowers. The girls will replace them if we can't fix them. In return for all the bother, they'll help you weed the roses this summer."

My sisters and I looked at each other in horror, but Ruby smiled at my mother through her tears. "I know we're particular about these roses," she said, "but they're very special to us. When my mother came from England, she brought one tiny part of her favorite rosebush. That was her reminder of home."

She paused a minute, then said sadly, "My mother had a magic touch with flowers. Over the years that one plant multiplied into all these bushes. Since she died, I've tried to keep them up, but I just don't have her magic touch."

Her voice was all choked up. "Mom died while Jack Junior was in Vietnam. He just found out about her death today. When he saw her rosebushes damaged, it was the last straw."

Ruby mopped at her tears. "Once we got him inside and calmed down, he admitted he's out of control. Jack just drove him to Clinton Valley to be admitted to a treatment program."

By now I felt really bad for the Jones family - what a sorrowful homecoming! I could tell my mother and sisters felt the same.

"We all enjoy the roses as much as you do. We'll be happy to help you care for them," my mother said. "You know, some people say I have a magic touch with flowers, too."

Soon both women were down on their knees talking and examining the damaged bushes together. A few weeks later, the plants all returned with vigor. My mother and Ruby worked together on the roses all summer long and many summers to follow. So did my sisters and I. A friendship formed between the families that would include countless birthdays, graduations and weddings - including Jack Junior's.

Years later, when her son left home and her husband died, Ruby became part of our family, spending many happy hours at our house. She wasn't Ruby Rednose anymore; she was Aunt Ruby. And the rose fence wasn't a fence any longer. My mother had turned it into a bridge.

- By Donna Gundle-Krieg

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

True Friendship Poem

If Ever You Need Me

If ever you need me
I will always be there

If ever you need a friend
I want you to know I care

If ever you need to cry
I promise to cry with you

If ever you need someone
My heart will shine for you

If ever you cannot see the sun
Only clouds up in the sky
I will hold your hand
I will help you see life in God's eyes

If ever you think
No one is there
You have Jesus love
He will carry your despair

If ever you wonder where God is
I will help you find the way
All things are done for a reason
I will help you pray.

Remember, you are like a sister
I understand your grief
When someone you love
Needs much relief

If ever you need me
I will be by your side

Jesus never forgets you
For He also cries

You have always
Been there for me
Now it is my turn,
To help you see butterflies are free

Do not feel unhappy
Or lost inside your heart
Remember Jesus loves you
I can feel His arms
He is with you forever
He will leave you never

If you need me, I will know
Whatever happens let your fear go

If you ever need me
I am always here
I will pray for you always
Because you are so dear.


- Linda Ann Henry © 2005

Monday, July 14, 2008

Beautiful Friendship Messages

God has given us two gifts; one is choice & another is chance.
Choice is to select a good friend & chance is to have a best one like you.
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Walk with me when your hearts needs company, take my hand when you feel all alone,
turn to me when you need someone to lean on, coz I'm a friend you can always depend on.
===============================================================
"Old friends are Gold! New Friends are Diamonds !
If you get Diamonds, Don't Forget Gold Because Only Gold can Hold a Diamond.
===============================================================
Listen and Silent are 2 words with same alphabet
& are very important for Friendship
because only a friend can listen to you when you are Silent.
===============================================================
Words begin with A... B... C...
Numbers begin with 1... 2... 3...
Music begins with sa... re... ga...
But friendship begins with You & Me.
===============================================================
A friend is like a "PILLOW", you can hug it when you are in trouble, you can cry on it
when you are in pain, you can embrace it when you are happy...!
Always remember I can be your PILLOW.

- Author Unknown