Not a Valentine's Day

I posted on fb today: "In the land of the shy and men of few words we celebrate Feb 14th as Friendship day (not Valentine's day). When I was young, I would send cards by mail to my friends. Now all I will do is this: Hyvää ystävänpäivää!" It wasn't enough, because when living abroad, friends are very, very important. Old friends, new friends, friends here, friends there, the ones who have dogs, the ones who have kids, the ones that speak the same language, the ones that try.. (which reminds I really should be studying French right now :o!).

Friends have always been important to me, and I have been lucky to have many friends. Don't know why, but I have found it quite easy to make friends. Not all of the friendships have lasted. Some have faded because of physical distance (yes, there was life before email and fb) and others because of differences in opinions, likes, dislikes.. and other stuff I cannot even remember anymore. But I am very grateful for all of them. They all are important.

At the moment, with a year soon drawing to a close in another new country of residence, I feel lucky to be surrounded by wonderful friends.

A recent chat with a friend made me think about how did it all happen? Well, networking, smiles, courage and effort. Or in other words:
- internet: Even before arriving, I googled for things that mattered and could link me to other people (and as much as I could since there is a little thing called French language in the way..) and found a few e-mail and fb groups  that turned out to be gold. I got to know other adoptive families, and I got to know other Finnish stay-at-home-mothers.
- Finns: Never underestimate the power of fellow countrymen&women when living abroad! You might not love them all, but the information is priceless. And you might find a few really good friends :)
- kid: Following a recommendation from a fellow-Finn, I took Valtteri to a music class that is in English. Excellent music class, and excellent place to make friends, both for me and Valtteri.
- dog: Rekku's cuteness always gets us stopped on the street and talking, but of course there is that language barrier.. Agility however always helps to connect and make friends :) Having a dog also helps to keep busy and get out of the house and get to know the neighborhood when moving to a new place.
- 'hello': Sometimes one just needs to open her mouth and talk to a stranger. That's what I did and found another great meeting place, and guess what? Made more friends!!

Happy Friendship Day!!