Ways to Live a Healthy Lifestyle - #10

Nourish your Friendships (Past and Present) How?  

• Pick up the phone and initiate conversation 
• Need a phone #...check whitepages.com
• Get your Christmas card address list out.  The number may still be the same.
• If you have the address, pick up a pen and paper and write a letter. The friend will be in awe of your willingness to take time to do it.  
• If a friend lives within a reasonable distance, go visit them.  Catch up over coffee or lunch.
• You do any one of the things mentioned above, my bet is you will hear from the friend soon.

Recently, I chose the "pen and paper" approach with a long time friend I worked with for many years.  We now live 1,600 miles apart but call each other once or twice a year.  Time marches on and it's been quite some time since either of us picked up the phone.

One evening, I sat down and started writing about what was happening since we last talked.  I rambled on about spending time with grandchildren, volunteering, teaching others, and fighting my longest battle, the ever-advancing Parkinson's.  When I was finished, I had six tablet pages.   When I added a few photos with explanations for each, I had to look for a bubble lined envelope to send everything.

The response from my good friend didn't take long.  In less than a week, I received a multi-page hand-written letter.  It began "...Handwriting a letter...well that's just unheard of these days - but I'm SO GLAD you did.  I too, think of you often and write letters to you in my head - unfortunately they don't seem to make it to paper - until now.  You are an inspiration to me in  more ways then you will ever know."