Family & Friends

1. Nothing is more important than family and friends. If you lose all your possessions and have no money, life may seem in dire straits, but who's going to help you? Your car or your mom? Your furniture or your best friend? Some may say that the most important thing is God, but you could also argue that family and friends are a gift from God.

2. You might be able to have too many family members, but you can never have too many friends.

3. Sometimes it's okay when friends or family members drift away, but it's better than okay to find them and get back in touch with them after many years.

4. Have some friends that you stay in touch with every few months, but have at least a few that you always stay in touch with more often.

5. This probably seems more obvious the older you get, but the longer you maintain friendships, the more meaningful and important they become. Going back to school years, my brother and I both stay in touch with some high school friends. My sister stays in touch with some high school, but mostly college, friends. My mom stays in touch with both and has annual mini-reunions with both.

6. Eat a sit-down dinner with your family at least once a week. I think Sundays are best, because it's a good way to recap the week - even though the "American" calendar begins on Sunday, but that's getting into religion, and you should never discuss politics or religion in a bar or at the dinner table, so let's move on.

7. For some reason, parents seem smart when you're young, not so smart when you're a teen, and then smarter right after you leave home.

8. "A friend, in need, is a friend, indeed." Don't know who said that, but it's worth including.

9. Another obvious one, but one that bears repeating since it's so easy to forget: the more you put into something, the more you get out of it. This is especially true with any relationship.

10. If you're lucky and you're married, then you're married to your best friend. I'm not married, but I imagine that would be the ideal relationship.