Over the last couple of months, for the benefit of my well-being, I have spent time meeting up, having a cuppa or lunching with old friends. I refer to them as old friends (not in years, however we are not as young as we were when some of us danced through the streets of London following a night out) but in time, I have to say I have collected a few from across the world over the years.

One of these friends Shaz and I met when I moved back to London in 1995 following the recent spilt from my then husband, she was in fact one of my team of managers that I had back then. We bonded straight away, me crying over my marriage, her trying to make me laugh through the tears, she succeeded and she has been helping me through the trials and tribulations of life since.

As we chatted, we not only reminisced of our younger days but talked through how lucky we have been to keep and maintain the same closeness all these years, sometimes living in different countries even.

So, what has held this friendship together? There are many things, trust, honesty, loyalty, a sense of knowing that through thick and thin we always have each other. Through each of our dark times we have always held each other close even though miles have separated us, in fact she was the one I called deep in the night when my burnout became unbearable.

I count myself lucky to have Shaz as a friend and even luckier that along with her I have many friends who fit into the same calibre some who I have known since my first day at school. Recently when my hubby and I visited London we met up with another old friend who used to work with Shaz and I in London, I hadn’t seen Adrian for eighteen years but our conversation flowed like I had just met him for a cuppa the day before. Shaz and I are now arranging a meet up in Kingston Upon Thames in the summer.   

Isn’t that what meeting up with ‘old friends’ is all about, an easiness, a past, a bond that cannot be broken because only your personal memories and times together is what cements it.

I hope you have friendships in your life that feed your soul, I am fortunate to have what I would call ‘new friends’ in my life too and I am sure that many of these will as time moves forward become ‘old friends’ as we build our friendship through memories and conversations.

Today take time to nurture all the friendships in your life, be grateful for the bonds you are creating, be there for each other, hold each other close even when distance separates you and make sure that whilst good ole social media can connect you daily that every now and again, in fact as often as you can you take time to meet up, have lunch, reminisce and in doing so you will indeed strengthen the link that first connected you whenever that may have been.

I have to say time out with a friend is one of the best forms of self-care, it feeds the soul and comes with it many brownie points for your well-being!