Friendship + #MotivatingMonday Link-Up

I was reading the paper the other day, something I occasionally do since they provide our school free daily newspapers, and I ran across an article about friendship. It caught my eye because I have recently been thinking about the friends that I have and evaluating what kind of friend I have been over the years. I am sad to say that some friendships that I should have nurtured and kept up with, I let go.  I moved out of an area I'd lived in for 10+ years, right about the time when I should have been nurturing friendships that would last over my lifetime. According to the article I read, studies show that the 20's are the time to define what you want in a friendship and draw in many different friends. The 30's are when you start to narrow down your circle of close friends and start to build even more on what you've begun in your 20's. The 40's and 50's are when you enjoy the fruits of your building years and are happy and enriched with your circle of friends. Studies show that when you have a good group of close friends your overall health is much better than those who don't have close friends. Couples also benefit from having friends to socialize with.

I am more motivated than ever to start concentrating on becoming the best friend that I can be in the hopes that when I need the mental stimulation of a good conversation, the companionship of a lunch date, the enjoyment of a funny movie or the comfort of an arm around my shoulders, I will have my good friends to rely on! So don't be surprised if you get my text or call saying, "Hey, wanna do lunch?"

 Today is Motivating Monday!  We all need a little motivation!  I, for one, love to explore other sites for motivating, mostly non-sponsored posts, tips, pictures and videos!  If I happen to find a great one, I'll link it up and share it with you here and on Twitter via the #MotivatingMonday hashtag!  It's like being featured!  I can miss some amazing posts, but I don't want to!  So, in addition, if you'd like to link up yourself, you can do that too!  I'll visit your site, comment, promote and publicize! Don't be shy--I'm really very supportive!  Remember, any link to your posts helps your blog numbers increase!