I wish I had a decent title...

It felt like a scene out of a movie. And I wish I could describe it more eloquently than I think I will, but here goes nothing anyway.

After work tonight I had plans to meet a girl from my life group (we'll call her R for the sake of her anonymity) for coffee, mostly as a "get to know you" type meeting. We've hung out together on Monday nights for a few months now, and knew each other at a pretty surface level. I won’t even try to tell you I know her real well even now, but it was nice to at least be able to start to open up and share a little more of my heart with her. We shared some of our struggles trying to find community at the point in life we’re both at. And asked some of the harder questions, that aren’t answerable over coffee for two hours, but somehow feel better just by getting them asked.

We sat chatting at our table, just a few feet away from two other women, who looked to be in their 30’s, sharing a glass of wine, chatting and laughing themselves. Without knowing anything about them, and I could completely be making this up because it’s the way I want the story to go, but it seemed to be two girlfriends catching up after work.

Just behind R sat a man and woman, who didn't draw much attention at first. At some point during our conversation, they must have gotten up, and walked past us, as R suddenly stopped talking and looked over my shoulder. The rest of the story as far as I can tell it, comes solely from the play-by-play I got from R and the two wine-drinking women sitting near us, as I couldn't turn around and look. The woman who was initially with the man, ended up sobbing in the arms of two girlfriends, as the man who was with her walked out the door. We don't know the story behind the tears, but came to a few broad conclusions based on a few phrases heard through the tears, and his quick exit. Thankfully the two other women were there to comfort her, offer hugs, and help dry her tears.

The three relationships found in this small coffee shop/wine bar tonight offered such a cool glimpse into the kinds of friendships I think we all look for at different points in life from different people. On one end, I completely enjoyed my spot in the get to know you type talk with a new friend. It's a fun place to be, just trying to figure relationships out. At the other extreme, I'm so grateful for the girlfriends who I can call when I'm on the verge of tears, yet know it's completely safe to totally fall apart with. And in the middle, some days I just need the girlfriends with whom I can share a glass of wine and chat about the little things going on in life, without the fear of sharing too much too early, or the energy it takes to be completely vulnerable.

Tonight, I'm thankful for the friends I have. All of you. The new, the old, the girls, the guys, the "shoot the shit" friends, and the "bare my soul" friends. I love you all.

And just because song lyrics are fun... "Thank you for being a friend, Traveled down the road and back again, Your heart is true you're a pal and a confidant. And if you threw a party, invited everyone you knew, You would see the biggest gift would be from me, And the card attached would say thank you for being a friend."