Progressing Away From Being Too Busy

We've all heard it before, the friend who says, I'm too busy....  or the unanswered emails, voice mails, texts that when you finally hear from your friend they state, I've been so busy, or I've been too busy.....

Yes we all get busy, and everyone's lives at some point are overwhelmingly characterized by every minute being sucked up, leaving us in a vacuum of accomplishing the tasks and being set free again. 

Seriously, too busy to text a hello? a how are you?  a Gosh I'm thinking of you but tied up at the moment?

What I hear, being a human with feelings, when someone I care about, states this to me after a week or two of non-communication is........  I don't care about you!  Call me crazy (and many have), but it is how I feel.

The need to interact with those we care about is instinctive, to share, laugh, get together and commiserate.... and I certainly have been guilty of using the I'm busy line myself at different times in my life, to avoid saying directly that the friendship has changed, that we no longer share common interests, or to avoid completely having to tell someone they've hurt me and I no longer want to be friends.

 I've learned that closure to others is important, how utterly rude of me to be so arrogant as to think  with people I care about, that my being busy takes precedence over nurturing a friendship, being there when they need me, or the audacity to allow a past friend to think I am so callous that I couldn't find the time to talk with them and give them some closure, tell them the honest truth on why I have left their life.

I've learned of late that keeping in contact is important, I even have one friend that we schedule in advance for a 4 hour block of time in the mornings one Saturday or Sunday each month.  I commit to it, and totally enjoy seeing her, catching up and hearing about her life.  

George Bernard Shaw wrote:
"You may neglect your intimate friends from time to time, but if you fail to cultivate these qualities—loyalty, forgiveness, honesty, and dedication—you can't expect to keep true friends."

As I age, I understand the importance of true friends, the one's who love you no matter what, that are there by your side when "it hits the fan", that call and share their lives, that advise and ask for advice, that see your flaws and love you in spite of it....... the people that become "family" to you. 

I guess I have some cultivating to do...........