Nurture your friendships

Friends having a Lekka Bos braai at Tokai Forest

We need to nurture our friendships by spending quality time with our friends. That is exactly what we did today on this beautiful spring day. A group of old friends decided to catch up and braai. Many of us haven't seen one another for years, although we are in touch via social media.

We set ourselves two conditions for this epic social. The braai was going to be a real "Bos" braai at Tokai Forest, our hotspot in the heyday. (Of course, that was before we knew that we would be paying the adult entry fee for our car as well!) The second requirement was that everybody was going to have fun - no other expectations or judgement, just good ol' fun. (This was easy and carried no hefty price tag.)


Needless to say, there under the pine trees, our braai social was insane. All the years of not seeing one another vanished like vapour. We laughed hysterically as we travelled down memory lane. Our teaching antics and our colleagues' eccentricities at Grassy Park High back then, read like a Harry Potter remix. At times our conversations became reflective as we lamented the loss of the debating culture and the absence of dialogue about education and society. During our days as teachers, such conversations were the norm. We had heated debates where all voices were heard and we grew phenomenally because of these exchanges.

This is what friendships are all about. Chatting and chilling in a relaxed environment. Vernon had commented on Facebook a while ago, that we must stop pretending to care about our relationships when we don't have such personal contact. Communicating via social media does not substitute meeting with friends. It is this rebuke that jolted us into committing to a date and venue.

Anni's message to the group this evening sums up our time together: "So lekker to let your hair down with old friends and laugh so that you can't breathe. We must do this more often."

Agreed, Annie. Also, a big thanks and a "Bos braai" shout out to Annie, Gascon, Cally, Wendi, Basil, Vanessa, Craig, Tony, Vern and Ash: continue spreading your caring, fun, inspirational footprint, guys.

If we want to be in a relationship, we must be present. Why don't you take the lead and do what our group did today?
Friends forever

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