This is Peanut Butter Brickle. What do you like about your friends?

Maybe you like how much fun you have together.

Maybe you like how you inspire each other to be better.

Maybe you like how different you are from your friends, but that you can learn from each other.

There are a lot to like about friends. And the longer we have known someone, the easier it is to not worry about what we say. Or what we do. Or how we act. We figure they will love us no matter what.

But when you make a new friend, you think more about what you say and how you come across. You try to be your best self.

So when we went hiking with our new friend Juneau a couple of days ago, I thought about friendship. You see, it was her first hike ever. I wanted her to enjoy it. I wanted her to to like it as much as Digby and I do.

So we showed her how to jump in a creek. We showed her how to pull your persons around. We showed her how much fun exploring is in the woods. She really seemed to like hiking. A lot.

No, she wasn’t listening very much when we told her it was time to take some pictures.

But in general, she tried. She trusted us. We became the three amigos that afternoon.

I began to think ahead a little bit. Sure. The longer we will know Juneau the easier it will be to sit without barking. We won’t work as hard to win her over. But should we ever stop?

If we value any relationship, we won’t become lazy. We will always keep trying to learn about each other and make each other better.

Just as Juneau is learning so much as a puppy from us, we are learning from her too. We learn about how important it is to live life to the full. And that includes the individuals who we invite into our lives. Don’t take friendship for granted. No matter how short or long of a time you have known someone. They may not be there tomorrow.

Value your amigos. Learn from your amigos. And work on yourself so that others want to earn your friendship too.

–Peanut Butter Brickle