New Friends, Old Friends

As a young child, I can remember my precious mother telling me this little rhyme that she had learned as a child: 
                                      Make new friends
                                      But keep the old.
                                      One's worth silver,
                                   And the other gold.

I'm thinking there's even a little tune that goes along with this rhyme---that would be easy for children to learn. It's a fun little rhyme, but so, so TRUE.
My friends are very important in my life, and I consider them among my greatest blessings. But as blessed as I feel with the friends I have, I still enjoy making new friends too!
That's exactly what happened this past weekend when I attended the American Christian Fiction Writers conference in Dallas, Texas. I met some precious ladies (and a few guys too) from all over the United States (and Canada)---and already have been in touch with a few of them (thanks to the wonders of modern technology and computers!).
Although I always learn so much about the craft of writing at these conferences, the friendships made are just as important to me. So I'm sharing one of my photos from this year's conference---showing myself with some of my precious Oregon friends.  These ladies are such a blessing in my life---even though we live on opposite sides of the country!

A man that hath friends must shew himself  friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.   Proverbs 18:24