To Be a Friend

by Hunt, David E.

• ISBN13: 9781554887514
• ISBN10: 1554887518
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-12-01
• Publisher: Dundurn Pr Ltd

Summary

In today's busy world, we may fail to realise that our need for friendship is as vital and important as our basic needs for food, air, and water. However, thanks to the high-stress environments people currently live in, they are now starting to realise how important friendship is to a healthy and full life. This book shows readers how to open the flow of friendship in their lives by learning to be friends. It offers activities that have proven helpful to participants in the author's workshops, exercises that prompt readers to examine their personal beliefs about friendship and apply them in daily life. By following these activities, readers discover how to be friends with themselves, how to be friends with others, and how to strengthen existing friendships. Author David Hunt also describes his experiences with learning how to be a friend, including his successes and failures.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. 11
Introduction	p. 15
Our Need for Friendship
Learning to be a Friend
How the Workshop Developed	p. 23
Beginning with Myself	p. 24
Opening My Heart	p. 29
Connecting with Others	p. 34
Learning From Experience	p. 46
Taking Action	p. 51
Honouring the Mystery	p. 56
Planning the Workshop	p. 62
A Workshop for Learning to be a Friend	p. 67
Principles of the Workshop	p. 68
What You Will Give to the Workshop	p. 78
What You Will Receive From the Workshop	p. 82
Welcome to the Workshop	p. 84
To Be a Friend With Yourself	p. 86
Appreciating Your Breathing	p. 87
Opening Your Senses	p. 91
Accepting Your Capabilities	p. 97
Accepting Your Foolishness	p. 102
Letting Go of Obstacles	p. 106
Summary of Becoming Friends with Yourself	p. 114
To Be a Friend with Others	p. 115
Recalling Being Completely Accepted	p. 117
Recalling Being Cut Off from Friends	p. 121
Making Space for the Others	p. 124
Accepting Differences in Others	p. 129
Accepting Others with No Hidden Agenda	p. 137
To Strengthen Your Friendship Ties	p. 142
Appreciating Your Friendship as It Is Today	p. 146
Imagining Your Friendship as It Might Be	p. 150
Appreciating Your Friend's Heart's Desire	p. 158
Choosing Your Actions to Strengthen Friendship Ties	p. 164
Honouring the Spirit of Friendship	p. 167
Concluding Exercise	p. 171
Bringing Out Your Meaning of Friendship: A Meaning Map	p. 171
How I Am Learning to Be a Friend	p. 181
My Personal Guide to Friendship	p. 183
Lighten Up à and Smile	p. 186
Stay Open Under Duress	p. 192
Accept à That's All	p. 204
Honour the Mystery	p. 214
Friendship Over the Years	p. 219
My Friendship with My Wife, Jan	p. 220
My Friendship with Harry	p. 223
My Friendship with the Thursday Group	p. 226
Conclusion	p. 231
References	p. 235
Acknowledgements	p. 239
About the Author	p. 241
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.