The Importance of Girlfriends

I have read many books in my time, but there is something very special about a story that showcases a great relationship between two women. I've found that having good girlfriends is one of the most important things in my life, and unfortunately that often gets ignored in literature.

I've blogged about books with great female friendships before, here. Today, instead, I want to celebrate the friends in my life:


First, I have my shopping friends. There is one pal in particular who is a genius at finding you what you need. I can call her and say, "Hey, I've got to find a lavender sunshade" and BLAM, she tells me where to go. And gives me a coupon. 


Shopping isn't nearly as fun with a husband; they tend to say, "No, you really don't need that. Put it back" when a girlfriend is all, "OMG, it looks so cute on you! You have GOT to buy it! and look - here are shoes to go with it!" 


So, here's to my shopping girlfriends. You guys are the funnest day out ever, especially when lunch is included.

Girlfriend, just get them all.

Next are my mommy friends. Bub has made friends herself with some lovely kids, and they have wonderful parents. The moms support each other, so I know I can call a mommy friend and ask for a favor. And they know they can do the same with me. I don't know how prairie women did it. Love, love, love my mommy friends.


My author friends are a special class, because we share a certain understanding and insight into each other's worlds. (Of course, there are men in this class too, and they are great as well.) I can sit and chat for hours with my author friends. 


Why am I the luckiest woman in the world? Because I still have some friends from high school to giggle with, that's why. Despite all the weird things that happened to me in my life, my old friends stuck with me and supported me through it all. 


Here's to you, old friends. You truly are better than gold, or emeralds, or chocolate mousse pie, even.


And here's to my daughter, who's becoming one of my best friends. It's getting to the point now where we can gossip and chat and go shopping together, which is just priceless. You can't buy that.


But I've saved the best friend of all for last - my dear sister and best friend. My sister and I have gone through dreadful experiences together, and it only brought us closer. She is a rock, and I'm blessed to have her in my life.


That's why I'm delighted when a movie showcases a lovely friendship between girls or women, instead of snarky jealousy or deadly rivalry. Friends are treasure; they are magic that is real.

A True Kind of Love Story; Or, An Ode to Friendship

There are loads of romance novels out there, and I have enjoyed quite a few of them. Georgette Heyer, for example, is a goddess to me. A well written romance, especially if it includes humor and some nice historical touches, is a delight. I'm talking a rainy day outside, a fire within, me, the couch, and a pot of tea... and a book in my hands.

Nurse Gwen must choose between Dr. Jack or a man about town!!!!!!!!

As a woman, I find romance very important. But there is a different kind of love that is also important, nay, vital to my happiness. I mean the relationship that I have with my girlfriends, the ones I chat with on the phone, the ones who are there to hear me vent, the ones who used to listen to me sob over the end of some great romance in my life.

There are some stories out there about friendships. During the seventies, the move Julia told the story of Lilliam Helmaann's friendship during the second world war. The Turning Point looked at the friendship between two ballerinas.

In the nineties there was that great love story about two friends, The Shawshank Redemption, but naturally that was about male friendship. I'd love to see a female version of that.

I wish there were more stories like this. Friendship is sometimes seen as a background. You have the sassy friend, the supportive friend, the rebellious friend, the bitchy friend, and they're usually there to help the main character through a mystery or a love affair.

But how about the development of the actual friendship itself?

Friendships sometimes grow, like romances, over time. Friends bump heads. We quarrel, and make up. We chat. We go out. We are there for each other, no matter what.

I wish, as an author, that I had the creds to detail that relationship. The story and the importance of friends, after all, is a special thing, and it is a bit neglected.

Anyone out there writing anything about pure friendship?