"Friends are the family you choose for yourself"

Book: Recipe Book Club

Authors: Andrea Israel and Nancy Garfinkel

I shamelessly stole this quote from a candle holder thing that I got for Leah for Christmas. It perfectly expresses our friendship and also in my opinion this book. Recipe Book Club, was written in letters which is a style that I love and am personally contemplating as an option for Leah and I to write about our lives. We have kept all the letters we have ever written to each other and wouldn't it be so cool to put them all together??? But anyway, about this book...

Leah picked it out and to be honest I wasn't sure I would like it, but she knows me and has great taste in just about everything so I gave it a shot. And I read it...And it made me sooooo angry! My first strong reaction is that Lily is an utter bitch and that Val is an utter snob. But I couldn't put it down at the same time. I read and read and read. The more I read, the more comparisons I found myself making between the characters in the book and the people/friends I have and have known. Yes, I could see similarities between myself and Val just because we are both quiet and shy, and between Lily and Leah since they are both bold and creative and fun. But I could also see similarities between Val and a girl Leah and I were friends with in HS. And after reading Leah's post on the book, I could see her comparisons between Lily and her friend Sadie. Bottom line, though, I just kept thinking throughout the whole book how glad I was that it wasn't Leah and my story. It was a wonderful story in and of itself and I enjoyed the book and loved how it made me think about and remember so many people that I have known. I loved that it made me angry and sad, and ultimately happy. But all in all I was just glad that our own story was so different from Lily and Val's.

My theory on our friendship which has lasted so long and is so integral to our lives, is this: We see each other as totally different people. I think Leah is the pretty, exciting, creative one and I have no idea how she sees me but I think of myself as the quiet, shy, sarcastically funny one. But regardless of how different we may perceive each other, we are basically the same. Different interests, different lives, but the same personalities. I think Val and Lily were total opposites and that is why their friendship was so tumultuous but also so great. Leah and I are different but the same and that is why our friendship has always been steady and strong. I wouldn't want Val and Lilie's story, but I can't imagine our own being any better or different. Now as Leah begins preparing for her wedding and marriage, I just am faced with all the different possibilities for how our lives will change. Whatever changes come though, I will be right here for her like she has always been for me...because that's what family does;D

........In case you haven't read the book yet, Val and Lily turn out to be sisters for real.........

.........I still like our story better though!..................