The Wellness Series – How you can help…. GIRLFRIENDS

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#friendship

Girlfriends… keep you grounded…

Loyal, grounded, fun, elevated, soulful…the list is endless when describing your ‘real’ girlfriends. In my spare time recently I was reading about Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner from the Game of Thrones.

Seeing some of the photos posted of their friendship – coined lovingly – ‘#Mophie’ – I think of my own ‘girlfriends’ who really are my ‘tribe’; who keep me grounded. I was blessed to have grown up in 3 different countries in 4 different schools.

My Girlfriends …

Although I’ve lived in many countries growing up – now living in my 4th country – my very first ‘best’ friend (age 4 – Kuwait) and I are still good friends although we haven’t met in years.  My next ‘best’ friend (age 8 – Kuwait) has her teenage daughter coming to stay with me next month!  Then ‘bff’ (age 14 – Los Angeles) – she has twin girls a year younger than my twin boys and they are 4 peas in a pod when they meet! I recently called her to review my life since I was 14 to now… a check one needs to ensure you’re back on track should you have strayed. ‘Bff’’ (age 15-Los Angeles) and I got our first tattoo together –the same one in the same place! And then ‘bff’ (age 16-Los Angeles) stayed by my side for almost 12 hours during my labour in the UK! My new ‘girlies’ (age 32 – London) are my ‘tribe’ – my support, my fun, my conscience of being a married woman and a mother living in the UK.

Together with all these wonderful friendships- I have had my amazing mother as well as the support of the wonderful women – my aunts who have been great role models!

Variety…

As my collection of wonderful friends grows… so do I.  I am exposed to so many magical facets of each one of them and they each bring out a different facet in me.  I know who to go to if I need spiritual sense, who to go to for business inspiration, who to go to when I want a care free night out.  Where to go for marriage guidance.  Who can enlighten me when I need parental advice.   I know can just chill on the beach with.  Who to talk about our reckless childhood with.  There’s the one who can remind me of how we were in Kindergarten learning to read and write.

You don’t need to have just 1 best friend, or attempt to be the ONLY ONE for a friend.  The goal is to grow and inspire.  Not to be boxed in.

Someone needs a friend…

I’ve met many people especially in my work that no longer have this ‘tribe’ and have to be strong for themselves and rely on themselves and are now just plain exhausted. They’ve been let down by their ‘besties’ at some point in their life. My heart goes out to them.
As a girl/daughter/wife/mother/woman – I don’t know where I would be without these powerful relationships. We have laughed together, cried together, celebrated the best times of our lives together.  Relied on each other, held hands and cooked together through all that this beautiful and sometimes roller coaster life has brought our way.

Go be that ‘friend’ today…

Ladies… there isn’t anything more special than the trust you can have in another woman, in the guidance you can get from your peers. It’s such an honour and privilege to be that person in someone’s life. To know you can be trusted AND that you can expect the same. To fall back on them and know they’ve got your back too.  These ‘friends’ are also our mothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, in-laws and out-laws!.  It’s the beauty of women respecting each other and recognizing the common thread that runs through us all.

It’s these relationships that keep us grounded when we fly; to keep us real when we stray.  To hold us when we are heartbroken, to guide us when we feel lost. It’s such a ‘high’ when you can do all of that and more for another.

Yes – you go through moments when it’s not all so perfect. When there’s jealousy and competition, misunderstandings, boyfriends/husbands we can’t tolerate.  But hey… we are only human. It’s getting over the pettiness and ‘feeling’ the bigger picture of that relationship and bringing it back to its integrity that matters.
By having these key relationships in our lives – we indirectly enhance our children’s lives and subconsciously instil some amazing values in them.

This is the first step to ‘Wellness’. Surrounding yourself with the best of yourself, the best of the best for your best self. And yes, let go of the ones who don’t fulfil this unspoken contract – that’s the first step to ‘Self-Care’.

Go on… go be that friend today!

 

 

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Showing 2 comments
  • Vanessa Britto

    Anupa, you were my First Best Friend and still are one my Best Friends. I know we might not talk or see each other in years but when we do it is like nothing has changed we fall back into that loving caring friendship that we started back in Kuwait in the UKG class with my Mom as our teacher. I have always known that I can count you to be there for me and for that I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart and here’s to many more years as Best Friends. Love Vanessa Britto

  • Anupa Panjabi

    Miss Britto… Ditto! Those memories and our relationships are so so precious and irreplaceable. I thank you and your mama for being you are and for being my foundation of what friendships and learning are based on! #blessed

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