Acquire a Friend

"Acquire a Friend."

"And God appeared to him in the plains of Mamre"

The Midrash tells us that when God commanded Avraham

to circumcise himself and his entire household,

Avraham sought the advice of 3 friends.

Aner, Eshkol and Mamre.

Mamre was the only one who told him to trust in God and

follow Gd’s command.

Mamre showed his true friendship and greatness by

selflessly urging Avrahom to follow the directive and thereby enter into a covenant with Gd.

This was a measure of his deep friendship.

The Mishnah in Pirkei Avot (1:2) tells us,

”To acquire for ourselves a friend.”

But who or what is a friend?

A friend is someone you love and who loves you.

Someone with whom you share your thoughts, your life experiences and yourself.

Someone safe to seek advice from.

Someone who makes themselves available and

gives of their time.

True friendships are holy and sacred.

A friend is the person you can call in the middle of the night,

who has your best interests at heart,

who can put themselves aside,

negate their own ego and truly be there for you.

A friend can tolerate not knowing, not fixing and can just be present.

The Mishnah is telling us

to be selective with who we share our precious and

valuable lives with.

May we find friends who will help, listen,

lovingly challenge, if need be,

encourage, support and push us.

A true friend worth acquiring, loves us for who we are

not for who they want us to be and can really

see us amidst the static of life.

True friends are bound together like family.

They are people we choose to travel through life with.

They are people we connect to on a soul level.

It is a real blessing to find people we want to learn and broaden our horizons with,

who are steadfast, reliable, trustworthy,

loving, safe, kind and giving.

My bracha for us all is that we find friendships that sustain, affirm and nurture us.

That we find friendships that help us grow.

Friendships that help us survive the challenges of life and

celebrate the joyous times.

Friendships within which we feel safe, loved, challenged and accepted.

Shabbat shalom

Much love

Elissa