Every morning I have a blessing that I read to get me present to my abundant life. That keeps me in gratitude. That allows me to be committed to my intentions but surrender to the outcomes. It is a beautiful way to begin the day.
There is a line in it which says:
"I am a good friend, bringing out the highest and best in those whom I have the honor of loving!"
One of the ways that I am able to be connected intimately and deeply with my friends is to practice deep understanding of their point of view versus immediately shoving my point of view in their space.
If I don't like something that they are doing, or am confused about their course of action, I simply ask more questions so that I can have empathy and closeness instead of judgement and mistrust.
A simple example of this is a girl friend of mine came over to my home for lunch and as I was washing the dishes she noticed me placing the knives in with the handle down, leaving the sharp side exposed and from a space of concern for my well being she requested that I turn them around.
You see, she has two kids, and she has gotten in the habit of protection from harm. And me, I was coming from a place of protecting the sharpness of the tips of my knives. I have never poked myself in the decades of doing this so it never occured to me as a dangerous practice. And clearly the protection of her children is far more important than the sharpness of the utencil!
The lesson here is that neither of us are wrong. There are no children in my home so I had never needed to change the way I was drying my knives - but through being able to put myself in her shoes and see as she does - we didn't end up having a mis-understanding.
Remember that your friends are truly a gift - they are your chosen family, treat them well!
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