InspirEmail No 140 - August 11, 2008

You will find as you look back upon your life, that the moments when you really lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love
Henry Drummond

InspirEmail No 140 - August 11, 2008
'Inspirational messages to refresh the spirit and boost the emotional bank account'

Friends and Acquaintances

There is a difference between being an acquaintance and being a friend. An acquaintance is someone whose name you know, who you see every now and then, who you probably have something in common with and who you feel comfortable around.

It's a person that you can invite to your home and share things with. But they are people who you don't share your life with, whose actions sometimes you don't understand because you don't know enough about them.

On the other hand, a friend is someone you love. Not that you are 'in love' with them, but you care about them and you think about them when they are not there. The people you are reminded of when you see something they might like, and you know this because you know them so well. They are the people whose pictures you have and whose faces are in your mind and heart regardless.

Friends are the people you feel safe around because you know they care about you. They call just to see how you are doing, because a friend doesn't need an excuse. They tell you the truth, the first time, and you do the same. You know that if you have a problem, they are there to listen.

Friends are the people who won't laugh at you or hurt you, and if they do hurt you they try hard to make it up to you. They are the people you love, regardless of whether you realize it.

Friends are the people you cried with when you got rejected from something you really wanted in life and during the last song at a farewell or funeral. They are the people that when you hug them, you don't think about how long to hug and who's going to be the first one to let go.

Maybe they are the people that hold the rings at your wedding, or maybe they are the people who give you away at your wedding, or maybe they are the people you marry. Maybe they are the people who cry at your wedding because they are happy or because they are proud.

They are the people who stop you from making mistakes and help you when you do. They are the people whose hand you can hold, or you can hug or give them a kiss and not have it be awkward because they understand the things you do and they love you for them.

They stick with you and stand by you. They watch you live and you watch them live and you learn from them. Your life is not the same without them.

Author Unknown

Positive Messages and Stories to Inspire You

A series of inspiring and uplifting stories written by the publisher of InspirEmail, to refresh your spirits and boost the emotional bank account . . . Positive Messages and Stories to Inspire You >>>

Portrait of a Friend

I can't give solutions to all of life's problems, doubts, or fears.
But I can listen to you, and together we can seek answers.

I can't change your past with all its heartache and pain, nor the future with its untold stories.
But I can be there now when you need me to care.

I can't keep your feet from stumbling.
I can only offer my hand that you may grasp it and not fall.

Your joys, triumphs, successes and happiness are not mine.
Yet I can share in your laughter and joy.

Your decisions in life are not mine to make, nor to judge.
I can only support you, encourage you, and help you when you ask.

I can't give you boundaries which I have determined for you.
But I can give you the room to change, room to grow, room to be yourself.

I can't keep your heart from breaking and hurting.
But I can cry with you and help you pick up the pieces and put them back in place.

I can't tell you who you are.
I can only love you and be your friend.

Author Unknown

August Featured Inspiration

Letting Go

In exactly the same way that birds have to find the courage to let go of a branch in order to actually fly, we must also let go of our emotional branches if we are to experience the exhilaration of soaring to our highest potential in life! The branches we hold on to are our innermost attachments: our beliefs, our . . . read the story >>>

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