Gem City Family: Fun things to do this August with friends

So here’s to the friends who’ve shown up in both big and small ways. Maybe you’ll recognize a few of them in your own life, too.

The work friend

You didn’t choose them, but somehow they became your person between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. They get your humor, they understand your side-eyes in meetings and they make long days bearable and staff potlucks enjoyable. Work friends are the ones who know your snack drawer secrets and talk you off the ledge before you quit.

Sometimes you drift apart when the job ends, but you never forget how they carried you through those long work days.

The do-anything friend

This is the one friend who says yes before you even finish the question. Road trip at midnight? Sure. From last minute girl’s trips to backyard bonfires, late night store runs, or a new fitness class, they are always game to ride along.

You don’t even need a plan, just being together is the plan. They are the fun one with the spontaneous spark every adult life needs.

The right-now friend

You may not have history with this one, and who knows what the future holds but in this season, they just get you. Maybe it’s another mom in the thick of toddler tantrums, or someone you met through a group text who turned out to be a lifeline.

You cheer each other on in this messy middle, even if your paths don’t cross forever.

These friends remind you that support doesn’t always have to be rooted in decades and some friendships can bloom overnight.

The parent friend

Whether you met at the playground, preschool drop-off, or waiting at dance class this is the friend who makes parenting feel less lonely.

They sends you funny reels when your kid is driving you up a wall and they don’t judge the laundry piles or the chicken nuggets for dinner.

They are in the parenting trenches with you and make the chaos of raising kids just feel lighter.

The forever friend

You’ve been through breakups, bad bangs, college, careers, and maybe even raising kids at the same time. Time can pass, distance can grow, but when you’re together, it’s like no time has passed at all.

This is the friend who’s known every version of you and stuck around anyway. You’ve seen each other through hard things and high points, and you know they will always be around for what’s next.

There is no breaking this friendship even when you have a fight, you will always come back around because they are your person.

Friendship doesn’t always look one way, and thank goodness for that. Life gives us different people for different seasons and if we’re lucky, a few of them walk the whole road with us.

Happy National Friendship Day to every one of you who has been a part of my story. I see you, I love you and I’m so thankful for you.

Ideas for things to do with friends:

Pamela Chandler is a local mom who writes the Gem City Family column for the Dayton Daily News. Reach out to her at thechandlercrew3@gmail.com.