February 8, 2013

And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.

For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

 

Lest you think my friend and I are some kind of bluestockings, it's time to let you in on a little secret.  We built in plenty of play time in addition to museums and operas in Chicago!  Hmm, well to be honest, I guess at heart we really ARE bluestockings, but we can still have fun!  In the words of Cyndi Lauper:

 

That's all they really want
Some fun
When the working day is done
Girls - they want to have fun
Oh girls just want to have fun


We have several favorite shops we love to visit when we are in Chicago, and Arts and Artisans is at the top of the list.  We also love Marshall Field (yes, I know it is now Macy's but it will always be Marshall Field to me!) and Nordstrom's, where we browse the racks for clothes and shoes.  But we always make time to stop by Arts and Artisans where we delight in choosing a special piece of jewelry as our get-away weekend 'souvenir.' 

In the past we've chosen colorful insect pins from a line called Yipes!---aren't they great?  My little clay bug and wooden luna moth are displayed in the second picture.  I love pinning them on in the morning and recalling our crazy weekends, filled with laughter and the telling and re-telling of silly stories and memories we've built over twenty years of friendship. We also proudly own earrings like those pictured below--they remind me of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture.  This year we found beautiful hand-blown glass pins at the Art Institute gift shop.  Next year I'm sure we will both be sporting them as we head towards Chicago for another weekend of fun!

Insect Pins

Geometric Designs by Barbie

We also visited a new store filled with all sorts of wonderful art supplies, but I'm planning to share that story with you later as I'm going to use them over the weekend for a couple of diy projects.  I thought I would wrap up my 'adventures in the big city' stories with one of my favorite poems on friendship, by Khalil Gibran. Friends have a special place in our hearts, and I look forward to my yearly Chicago trip with one of my dearest friends.  Your friend is your needs answered...And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.  Amen.  
Friendship IXX  
by Khalil Gibran
And a youth said, "Speak to us of Friendship."

Your friend is your needs answered.

He is your field which you sow with love and reap with thanksgiving.

And he is your board and your fireside.

For you come to him with your hunger, and you seek him for peace.

When your friend speaks his mind you fear not the "nay" in your own mind, nor do you withhold the "ay."

And when he is silent your heart ceases not to listen to his heart;

For without words, in friendship, all thoughts, all desires, all expectations are born and shared, with joy that is unacclaimed.

When you part from your friend, you grieve not;

For that which you love most in him may be clearer in his absence, as the mountain to the climber is clearer from the plain.

And let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit.

For love that seeks aught but the disclosure of its own mystery is not love but a net cast forth: and only the unprofitable is caught.

And let your best be for your friend.

If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.

For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill?

Seek him always with hours to live.

For it is his to fill your need, but not your emptiness.

And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures.

For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.

  Have a wonderful weekend!

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