The Women I Love

A few months ago, I did a series of posts about the Great Loves of my life. I wanted to honor and appreciate the love I have had. My close friend, El's Mom, commented on one of the posts saying "you are one of my Great Loves". And it got me thinking- I have women in my life that could and should be honored as Great Loves as well.

The first I must mention is of course, El's Mom. She is one of my oldest friends- we were good friends in college, and we were roommates in NYC for a couple years right after college. What makes her a Great Love? It's the fact that I know that I love her unconditionally. No matter what. And I know I trust the same from her. El's Mom is an amazing woman- insightful, compassionate, wise. I have never, ever felt judged by her. I know that she always accepts me and loves me just as I am. I remember years ago saying to her "It's too bad you don't plan on being a mom, you have a lot to give to a child". That's probably why El came along! I have enjoyed evolving and growing as a person with El's Mom in my life. We are both pretty big on self-awareness and self-development.

Then there is KH. KH started as a boss, a mentor. She has had such a huge impact on my life- most of the geographical moves I have made in my life have had something to do with KH. She pushed me in my early career, she believed in me, and enabled me to thrive. Over the years, we became very close. Our relationship began to get personal after I went through a particular tragic event. Slowly, we revealed more of ourselves to each other and it became a mutually respectful, no expectations type of friendship. Without realizing it, we got to the point where we really loved each other. Again, what feels good about this relationship is the completely open communication, lack of judgement, and full acceptance. We know each other's faults. We support each other fully. And we are completely loyal.

In recent years, I believe I have become better at establishing Great Loves with women. There are several women that I feel I could count on in a pinch, that understand me completely, that love me and care about me. AV- she has the biggest heart and most loving soul I've ever seen. KB- our connection was immediate, and even though we don't talk or see each other that often, when we do, it's like sisters. BJ-I find her nurturing and genuine, and our mutual respect for each other is so satisfying...I am so glad they are in my life.


I also have a couple of newer friendships that have the potential for Great Love- MH- we are on similar paths and have similar goals and it feels good to be able to openly talk about them and share. JK- another woman whose nurturing spirit is comforting to me. LP- she is an older woman and I find it very valuable to get her perspective, we are able to get to the core of a subject in a very short amount of time. I do find it interesting, obvious, and a little bit sad that most of these women are my mother's age, but I digress.

*Sigh*

Wow. I feel blessed.