A Reflection...

I was checking blogs this evening and happened onto my friend Jenney's blog to see a video about women and the bonds we have with one another in our lives. This had me reflecting once again, as I have on many occasions recently, about just how fortunate I am to finally have such a wonderful support system of women in my life.

Growing up, I remember always having good friends, but I always seemed to be the one that was a little different and therefore the first one to be left out of things. I think a lot of this had to do with the fact that I was heavily involved in gymnastics growing up. It took up so much of my time that there simply was not enough time for keeping up with my friends. I think this greatly contributed to my independence in most aspects of my life. I embraced it in some ways for the preservation of my self-esteem.

I know a lot of how I was treated growing up lead to a distrust of my female friends. I tended to look for more male friends that were very honest with their feelings with me. I could trust in knowing exactly where they stand with me. It was safer, but I don't think it was ever fulfilling in the way only female friends can relate.

It wasn't until after the birth of my second child that I really began to seek out female friends again. I found an online message board as many moms do looking to share with others but not necessarily having the time to do so everyday in real life. From that board, there were a number of us that branched off to form a very small, private board after becoming disgusted with the poor behavior that the security of anonymity on there allowed.

On our new board, we quickly forged an amazing bond with one another. We have now seen each other through the births of more than one child, diagnoses of disorders and diseases, and devastatingly, the death of a child only one day younger than my second daughter. We have laughed, cried, vented, and raved about life with one another in ways that can't compare to anything else. These women probably know more about me than many of my real life friends. I have been fortunate enough to meet a number of them in real life now, and it is amazing how seamlessly we go from online to in person. I am so lucky to have these women in my life.

The other group of women I happened upon through looking for a way to meet other moms that practice attachment parenting was through a yahoo group for moms to for a playgroup. I had previously tried to meet other moms around town but found myself completely unable to relate to them. They were more mainstream moms that thought I was very weird for the way I parented. I could not get over their views on parenting either. It just was not a fit. So, I was so happy when I found a small playgroup with like-minded moms.

Through this playgroup, I have really made some of the best friends I have ever had in my life. While we all have very strong opinions on many subjects that may or may not differ from each others views, we are all accepting of one another. Not only that, but they have probably opened me up to many more different ideas than any other group has done before. Each women brings something to the table that makes them just invaluable. I know I could turn to any one of them for anything. What a truly amazing thing to find in life.

Anyway, I just wanted to share the video I watched with all of you, and I hope that you are each as fortunate to have found something similar in your own lives.