The Power of True Friendship (and College Football)
Here's what it took to get me to go to a non-UGA football game.
If you had told me two years ago that I would be spending the first weekend of fall traveling to Tallahassee to watch the Florida State Seminoles, I wouldn’t have believed you.
It’s a long story, so bear with me here, but you’ll understand why this weekend was such a big deal.
I’ve known Brooks since he was a toddler. I got to know his family through church, and I babysat him and his siblings for years.
I took Brooks and his older brother Brett to UGA baseball games, to play putt-putt, and to do plenty of other things. Those friendships have continued into adulthood.
When Brooks was a senior in high school, he wanted to go on a college visit to Florida State. His parents couldn’t work it out with their work schedules, so they asked me to take Brooks. We combined it with a football weekend so he could watch the Seminoles.
Fast forward to 2019. A series of circumstances that I won’t go into here led to a falling out. At one point, I thought our 30-plus-year friendship was over.
It was a tough time, but I forgave him and let him know that. I also committed to praying for God to help him defeat his issues and come back stronger. But we also needed some time apart to heal wounds.
About a year ago, Brooks reached out to me again, and we reconnected. We’ve had plenty of phone conversations and texts, and I was able to minister to him when his wife died.
At one point, one of us realized that this was the 20th anniversary of our trip to FSU. So we made plans, and the trip happened this weekend. (Even though obviously, my Bulldogs needed me more… 😬)
Here’s what was great about that weekend. We didn’t have to talk about reconciliation. We didn’t have to dredge up what happened in the past. The only memories we talked about were pleasant ones. We picked back up as if nothing had ever happened. And we had an amazing time — despite tickets that the owner had double-sold on different ticket-broker platforms and a nasty motel room with sticky floors and a leaky refrigerator.
It’s because ours is a true friendship.
True friends are always there for each other — there’s no such things as a one-sided friendship.
Conversations with true friends are continuous, no matter how much time passes in between them.
Even if friends need a break from each other, true friendships are never over.
But true friends in the South bond over college football!
The Book of Proverbs has lots to say about true friendship:
A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. —Proverbs 17:17
A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. —Proverbs 18:24
Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. —Proverbs 27:17
Brooks and I are eternally grateful for each other’s friendship, and I have plenty of other true friends. I hope I never take them for granted.
Who are you true friends, and how can you show them your gratitude?