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About 25 years ago I was invited to a birthday party for my friend Louis, a mentor and a man I greatly respected. Although I was in my mid 20’s and he seemed quite old, (I’m guessing he was around 70), I was excited to attend his party. Louis told me that this party was ‘a small gathering for his closest friends’. I was living in Los Angeles and the party was being held in Las Vegas, but I didn’t want to miss it so I made the arrangements to travel to be there.Friends

I’ll never forget walking into the room, filled with more than 1000 people- all there to celebrate Louis’ birthday. It took me 20 minutes just to find him in the crowd! Thinking this would be an intimate gathering, I asked him, “Louis, I thought you were only inviting your closest friends to this party?”

He smiled, gave me a hug and then said words I will never forget. His response was, “I did. Everyone in this room IS a close friend of mine. If I were arrested, thrown into jail and needed someone to bring $10,000 to bail me out at 2am, I could call anyone in this room and they’d be there- just as I would be there for them.” He could tell that I was a bit surprised and perhaps a bit doubtful.

Being the wise mentor that he was, Louis continued by sharing that while all of his friends had spent the last 50 years gathering material possessions, mistresses, or awards, he’d spent his time collecting the only thing that ever matters- friends. He told me that whenever he came across a “keeper”, their name went into the Rolodex and they were “stuck with him for life”. Being Louis’ friend was a long-term commitment.

What I learned from Louis that afternoon has stayed with me for the past 25 years. Friends are the only commodity you can’t trade, sell or barter. They are more valuable than gold, possessions and accomplishments. As we get older they only become more valuable. You can’t buy them. The only way that you can get one is to first BE one. And when you find the “keepers”, put them in a very special place in your life, stay in touch with them, love them, celebrate and play with them and most of all, be there for them.  That alone will pay great dividends as we age.

So thank you Louis, not only for being my friend, but for teaching me one of the most important lessons I’ve ever learned. Twenty-five years later, I’ve now passed the 50 year-old mark. Seventy no longer seems as old as it did when I was in my 20’s. And throughout the last 25 years I’ve taken your advice and have built an address book of hundreds of friends that I love and adore. These are my “keepers”. I don’t ever hope to call any of them at 2am asking for $10k for bail money, but if I had to, I’m sure at least one of them would show up. 🙂

No matter your age or circumstances, I highly recommend you also take Louis’ advice.  Leave the material things to others and go for what’s valuable in life- collect memories and collect friends. Maybe on your 70th birthday you too can invite 1000 close friends and have them all be thrilled to be there to celebrate your special day. And the first step to accomplishing that, is to start by BEING a friend first.

To our InspireMeToday community, thank you for your friendship, love and support. You guys are keepers. 🙂

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Gail Lynne Goodwin is the founder of InspireMeToday.com, bringing the best inspiration to the world. InspireMeToday.com provides free inspiration, each day from a new Inspirational Luminary, to a global community of folks from over 150 countries. Gail has interviewed many well-known names including Sir Richard Branson, Guy Laliberte, Seth Godin, Tony Hseih, Gary Vaynerchuk, Michael Gerber, Marci Shimoff, Jack Canfield and hundreds more. According to Mashable, Gail was one of 2009's Top 25 Most Inspirational People on Twitter.

Prior to InspireMeToday.com, Gail spent several years as manager for her recording artist daughter, Carly. As a result of the success of their co-penned song, "Baby Come Back Home", Gail accompanied her daughter to bases in the US and to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where Carly performed for our troops. Gail and Carly created the 'World's Longest Letter' of love and support and delivered the 18-mile long scroll on a month-long tour of Iraq and the Persian Gulf in 2006.

Gail is excited to present her latest course, Love in 21 Days, a step-by-step guide to finding love online. Love in 21 Days is founded on a logical process that has been tested - and proven! - by not only Gail, but also by students around the world who too have found love.

Gail is a published author and a regular writer for the Huffington Post. She offers mentoring and mastermind services to clients worldwide from her home in Whitefish, Montana. Follow Gail on Twitter or Google+.

This Post Has 6 Comments

  1. Simply amazing…the best thing i’v read in this whole week…especially cuz i cherish my friends more than anything else…

    1. Thanks Varun. Louis was a very wise man. I’m happy to share his wisdom and grateful that it resonated with you too. Thanks for your comment.

  2. So true! I have THE. MOST. INCREDIBLE. FRIENDS. and I’m so very grateful everyday for them. I especially love that my friends span my life – from those I went to elementary school with to people I have met very recently. And in times of crisis or tragedy, you really do find out who your real friends are. 🙂 Happy Tuesday to you!

  3. I don’t think that it comes even close, say if you are in a Twitter-medium and meeting new friends everyday, but in case it does, what your wise man said reminds me of gaining new horizons or new friends you never knew even cared for what you do or who you are as a person.

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