So What Does STYLEZ Think?
This was a most WONDERFUL post! I definitely can relate to the choices in friends that are made in adulthood, as compared to yester-year. I have done the same as Ms. Nikks describes in this powerful post about friends and friendships. You truly have to cherish the friends that are a positive, inspirational and/or motivating force in your life. That is “true love” at its finest! People who you choose to be around and close too, doing what they do best and making you happier (and all the more better) for it! This post has made keeping that idea close to mind and helped me realize the friends I will keep close to my heart!
That is what Stylez thinks! Read the post below and leave a comment about what friends/friendship mean to you!
Daughters of Zeus & Mnemosyne
As my friend Elle and I walked towards the tiny cafe on the corner of 109 Street, we looked in and saw our friend Ash sitting at one of tables. I make a face at her through the window, she frowns and rolls her eyes, because we’re late (as usual). I entered the building as if for the first time. Usually it’s a bit busier and all you can hear is the clicking of keyboards as uni students type away at papers or are messing around on facebook or twitter. Today it was quiet.
I order an iced chai latte and a few vegan samosas. Elle, Ash, and I move closer to the back of the small cafe and make ourselves comfortable in large booth. The girls are talking and I take time to check out the vibrant paintings on the wall. The smell of the various spices used in the East Indian cuisine that the cafe specializes in. I feel like I’m somewhere else, not in this city that sometimes has me feeling trapped. I hear Nina Simone singing one of my favorites “Misunderstood”. My friends look at me and smile, they know it’s my favorite. They don’t expect me to talk when my song is on. My food and drink are ready. I’m back to focusing on the conversation at hand.
We talk about men and what to do with them, work, travel plans, the previous week and the upcoming week. We talk about everything! I realize how things have changed and how people change. I’ve always been picky about the people I choose to associate with. In high school it was about being labelled. In college, it was about staying on track. Now those days are long gone and I’m finding it’s not really about being stereotyped, my decision on the types of friends I choose has to do with inspiration.
I’ve made friends and I’ve lost friends. I used to think about those losses from time to time, but I say to myself these days, “Ain’t nobody thinkin’ ’bout you!” That’s enough for me to get over it. These girls are more than amazing friends, they’re my sisters and I’d definitely lose sleep over losing them. These girls are my sounding board. If I’m feeling uninspired they motivate me. I’m hardly insecure or unsure, but the rare occasions when I am, they enkindle me with encouragement. They don’t leave me until I’m feeling 100.
It is so important to have people around you who are impassioned, not people who are just yes men and women. Surround yourself with friends who influence you to love art, music from Bach to Florence & The Machine, foreign foods, travel, theatre/broadway, and those who encourage you to always better yourself. Surround yourself with the daughters of Zeus & Mnemosyne. Surround yourself with a muse or two! Thanks for the inspiration heifers!
Nikki Nikks
