I have a friend who doesn’t have a lot of money. Scratch that. She has very, very little money. She’s unemployed following being disabled for a year and a half, her husband has been looking for a job for about the same period of time. They have three kids, two of whom still live at home. Things are tight.
Yet my friend is one of the most giving people I know. She gives of her time and her energy, helping decorate the space when her women’s prayer group holds their monthly breakfasts. She cleans and re-wallpapers another friend’s new apartment when that friend leaves her husband. She always sends thank you notes and calls just to say hi.
My friend doesn’t have a lot of money, and she might not make the best financial decisions with the money she has- she’d be the first to admit it. But when it comes to friendship, she gives her time, and her attention, and those are gifts that money can’t give.
What’s the best gift your friends give you?
Subscribe by 
Get updates by
Follow us on 
Friend us on 
{ 9 comments }
Kelly, there you are, making me think again 🙂 I guess the best gift my friends could ever give me is make me smile. I don’t care much for presents (yes, I do realize that’s weird) and I value the fact they took time to think about me. I am so busy all the time, running around, rushing, trying to make everything work, trying to make everyone happy – I need other people to put a smile on my face, and who would do that if not my friends?
Emma´s last blog post..How to get away with cooking once a week for your baby
As a gift to the woman of my church I teach a Christmas craft right after thanksgiving. This year we made a little container and filled it with homemade magnets.
I'm not big on presents, but during a crazy busy time this year I really appreciated it when friends cooked for me. More generally, I appreciate when friends are comfortable with both the serious and the silly. I love honesty, affection and a well-written note. Ooh, and friends who love my children and are happy to swap babysitting.
My friends’ best gifts to me are time, a ready ear, companionship, and frugal wisdom. We’ve got a group of 4 moms, all with kids around the same age, and we have the best time all collecting together at one of our homes every Monday with the leftovers from our fridges. We laugh, gossip, enjoy each other’s company, as well as the fodder from the back of the refrigerator. I am SO blessed!
Emily´s last blog post..I Get By With a Little Help from my Friends…
This may sound funny but e-mails. I am so busy most of the time, that a phone call won’t get returned for a week or so and “popping by” would send me into a mild coronary. My friends close friends know this and send me e-mails whenever they want to chat, give me a heads up to something, or just plain want to see how I’m doing. They know that if I don’t have the time to respond right then, I will get back to them as soon as I have 5 minutes free on the computer. The messages on my side are usually long and full of detail, but I know they wouldn’t have it any other way. I love them dearly for not being offended by this and actually encouraging it by leaving notes on the bottom saying “get back to me when you have free time. Love you lots!” You just can’t buy friends like that :o)
Amiyrah´s last blog post..Umm, CVS again?
My friends give me the gift of indulgence: in my flights of fantasy and my tales of woe, my gripes and my ecstacy. I'm grateful for their indulgences near and far every day.
<abbr>Lisa´s last blog post..Anatomy of A Foreclosure</abbr>
@Amyirah: I can SO relate to that! My crazy life is just the same and my friends are the coolest people for putting up with my emails instead of human voice and normal conversations. Aren't they great! Thank God for friends.
<abbr>Emma´s last blog post..How to get away with cooking once a week for your baby</abbr>
I do enjoy the gift of laughter, when friends get together and make each other laugh it's awesome. I don't even mind, on the odd occasion, where the laughter is at my expense. I am also not all that into gifts, giving or receiving, but it does impress me when somebody, who hasn't got much themselves, gives gifts. It's so easy to give a gift when you are in a good financial position, and so hard (and remarkable) when you are not.
<abbr>Bryan White´s last blog post..Christmas Batteries – Go Rechargeable</abbr>
Good for your friend. I think giving back in any way you can is insurance for happiness and, strangely enough, there are many people that say it can help you get rich as well. There’s certainly no guarantee, but I’ve noticed that I feel more peaceful and contented when I try to help others. And, it also turns out that it leads to good things happening to me. I don’t do it for those reasons but that’s always what ends up happening.
Jerry
http://www.leads4insurance.com