The Italian Flat Parsley has decided it wants to be friends with my Hoopes rose!
This past winter I transplanted my Hoopes rose to a nice big pot. I didn’t have quite enough dirt in the process, so I just scooped some dirt from the pot in which we grew parsley last year.
Evidently the parsley had self-seeded … and lo and behold! … parsley sprouted up, and is growing happily alongside my Hoopes rose!
Professional plant snobs might say: That parsley can’t grow there alongside the rose! Parsley needs to grow in an herb garden!
When we think about friendship, we often think that in order for a friendship to flourish, we need to be the “same kind of plant.” (so to speak) We need to be just like each other. We need to be the same age … same stage in life … same interests … same hobbies … we like the same things … we’re in the same social network … etc.
We assume that friendship must be based on “sameness.”
Or … perhaps we assume that in order for a friendship to flourish, we need to be “planted” in the same place: same job … same work … same school … same church … same ball league … same social circle … etc.
We assume that friendship must be based on the same place we have in common.
What makes a friendship flourish??
What is it that makes a friendship have deep roots? What is it that makes a friendship last … throughout the years … no matter the differences between us … no matter the distance between us??
Here you can see several Big Leaf Maple sprouts which were trying to grow in my back flowerbed. Last fall hubby and I piled heaps and heaps of Big Leaf Maple leaves in this particular flowerbed, to serve as mulch, and ultimately “compost.”
In amongst the leaves were hundred upon hundreds of Big Leaf Maple seeds. Over the course of our wet, rainy winter, the seeds were softened. And with the coming of warm sunny weather, the seeds all began sprouting.
But the sprouting Big Leaf Maple seeds had no soil … because they were sprouting in amongst piles of leaves heaped up high in the flowerbed.
So, each of the little sprouts began sending their roots down, down, down … looking for good soil.
And they found good soil!
If allowed to grow, these Big Leaf Maple sprouts would have grown tall and flourished … rooted deeply in good soil.
So … back to our original question: What makes a friendship flourish??
Being deeply rooted in Jesus Christ. That’s it!
The Italian Parsley and the Hoopes rose can grow happily alongside each other in friendship because they are both rooted in good soil. They don’t have to be just like each other to be friends. They don’t each have to grow in seclusion with their own type.
True deep lasting friendship is not based on being just like someone else.
Nor is true deep lasting friendship based on being in the same place as someone else.
True deep lasting friendship is based on being deeply rooted in Jesus Christ.
Recently hubby and I flew down to Southern California to visit some very dear special friends. Our friendship with them is a lot like the Parsley and the Hoopes rose.
Hubby and I are not exactly just like our very dear special friends. We are not the same age. We are not the same stage of life. Our jobs are not the same. We do not go to the same church. In fact, we don’t even live close to each other at all. We live hundreds of miles apart … and have lived hundreds of miles apart for many years.
But we are deeply rooted in Jesus Christ!
These very dear special friends were our very first friends when we moved to the big overwhelming city of Seattle over 20 years ago. We were just a vulnerable young family with two small children … and these very dear special friends loved us! With the love of Jesus! They loved our kids! They taught our kids about Jesus!
Their lives were filled with the love of Jesus!
And our connection in Jesus Christ became the bond of friendship between us!
True lasting friendship is based on a bond of connection through Jesus Christ! Your bond in Jesus Christ holds you together no matter the differences … no matter the distance!
Jesus is the basis for true and lasting friendship!
Jesus is what causes a friendship to have true lasting deep roots!
