Friends with benefits

I guess I need to explain that title anybody thinks this blog is going in a different, and more liberal, direction than usual.
I'm just thinking of how blessed I have been with friends, even knowing, honestly, that I am not the best of friends.
I'm not bad, really. Just not great at it. I like to be alone. Alot. Some people can take this as being aloof or snobby. I don't think I'm either of those things. I just replenish myself by being alone. And quiet. And contemplative. My gosh, I sound like a monk. I hope I am one of those monks that make the terrific caramel. That would be cool and yummy.

Anyway, back to my friends. I have been blessed in my life to have some awesome people around me.  Take, for instance, a couple I spent a few days with last week.
I made a pot of Chicken Tortilla Soup.

In return, I got this. Delightful in every way. Like the friend herself. (Look Jen! You made the blog again! Hey there, girlfriend.,,,.)

And this.

Adorable, yes?Don't you want one of these cutie McCutersons for yourself? Be jealous, people. My friends are amazing as well as talented, crafty and over-the-top generous. (Both these items were "re- purposed." I love trendy words.)
Being friends is not all about giving each other gifts.
Although, I'm just gonna say, it sure doesn't hurt.
It's not all about laughs and giggles. Although I'm a big fan of the both the laugh and the giggle.

One of the things I treasure most highly in a friend is the ability to say the hard things. Like, "hey sister, your sweater is on inside out and the tag is all hanging out there for the world to see, and you are disrupting people's worship time because all they can think about is when are you going to figure out that your clothes are on inside out"
Oh, that's right. No one told me my sweater was inside out. I had to figure it out myself during church, after the stop at the store and after the stop at Starbuck's.
 But, yes, I would have appreciated a girlfriend stepping up.


"The best mirror is an old friend."
- George Herbert
I have no idea who George is, but he hit the nail on the head with this one. (and how did he know my friend's were old?)

"An honest answer is the sign of true friendship."
- Proverbs 24:26

That's what I want from my friends.

If I am being gossipy, they will stop me.

If I am being harsh, they will tell me.

If I am spending too much time alone, they will come get me.

If I am not taking care of myself and eating cake batter, they will take that cake batter right out of my hands and eat it themselves.

If I am not going to church for a couple weeks in a row, they will ask why.

If I try to crimp my hair with out and thermal protectant, they will unplug that crimper.

Oh nevermind. They will wait until my hair has burnt  off in patches clear up to my scalp on top of my head and feels like old carpeting.
It's a good look with my backwards sweater with the big tag waving in the breeze at everyone behind my back.
But they will tell me never to do that again.
And they will repeatedly assure me that I don't really look like the love child of Bozo the Clown and  Richard Simmons. More like his second cousin. Or like a caramel-making monk.

See? A trustworthy, honest friend is worth their weight in Chicken Tortilla Soup.

What traits do you most value in a friendship?
(Fyi: if you are looking for a friend with burnt hair patches, I may be able to hook you up.)