Someone said  “God chooses our family but ‘friends’ are the family we choose for ourselves”. When it comes to family and friends I am a very loyal person. I don’t get close to people easily but if I do, they are my friends for life. I have been friends for as long as 20 years with some of them. But no one said it’s going to be easy.

There are a lot of ups and downs you go through with your friends because of your situation. It could be the distance, work, time, relationships. But, you have got to make time for your friends.

No matter how busy I get, I call my friends regularly, try to remember their birthdays, send them flowers. I am old school, but don’t you think it makes you feel special when a basket of flowers arrive at your front door on your birthday?

In this time and age of digitization everything is changing so quickly. People have 500+ friends on Facebook but barely have any friends to go out for coffee or who they can call without a hesitation. Life gets busy and we cannot predict our future. I lost a dear friend to Cancer two weeks ago. When we became friends 10 years ago and used to hangout, little did I now that I will be attending his funeral 10 years later. That is the turn life takes, and we are left with regret. Regret of not meeting up with friends, regret of being busy with work, regret of cancelling those dinners, regret of not spending enough time.

Let us hold on to our near and dear ones like there is no tomorrow and give them the time and attention they deserve.  Thats what I signed up for when I became friends and will stick to that for life!

-Shine.