Many Ways to Define Good Friends

There are many ways to define a good friend.

I am fortunate to have many good friends, plus my rock.

Good friends listen to you, support you, give you suggestions, and even criticize you when necessary, and have many other wonderful qualities that define themselves as good friends.

I added another definition today. A good friend will help you clean your son's turtle tank when he is away for three weeks and you can no longer stand the smell of the tank. I can clean most of the tanks, but the two bigger ones. The largest tank will probably last until my youngest comes home, but the medium tank was making my eyes water.

We clean the two big tanks using a shop vac. It takes two people. I called a friend today and asked if I could rent her son (a friend of my youngest) to help me clean the tank as I really did not think I could make it another day. They came over and helped with the shop vac and refused to take the money I offered. I don't think they really understood how much it meant to me.

I really hate asking for help, it makes me feel weak. I am learning however, that I am not going to be able to make it without help from my friends that goes beyond listening and talking. I am sometimes going to need physical help.

I am learning that I need to quit going beyond my physical limitations because when I do I am down for days. It is better for me to ask for help and keep myself healthy so that I can help others. It would be better to pay it forward than to be on the couch for days in physical pain.

I am blessed with friends, and I hope I can bless them back.

I am also blessed because my eyes won't be watering today.