Eve Mantu Visits Somero

There is one thing in life that we all want - we all need - we sometimes undervalue and sometimes don't have enough of...but still we are often afraid to go looking for it.  What am I talking about?  I'm talking about friendship. It is something that none of us want to be without. I came with my family to Somero knowing no-one - and we have been warmed by the people we have met since we arrived and the friendships that are starting to form. In setting up our English Discussion Groups, I had the dual aim of teaching English and also providing a way for people to meet each other.  I have always found the people in Somero to be friendly, but I am quite sure I am not the only person in town who needs a way to get to know people a bit better. Groups like this are great as they give you the chance to really talk together in a relaxed environment.

Making new friends is always a positive thing, but so is the rediscovery of old ones.

Today I had the pleasure of meeting up in Somero with someone who used to be one of my closest friends more than twenty years ago. At the time we were both in our early twenties and working as disc jockeys in Helsinki. Time moved on, I lived away from Finland for many years and we lost contact. Since that time, by old friend Eve Mantu has made a successful career as a radio journalist working for YLE and today she came to visit me in Somero.  

She was doing an interview for her next programme (Tuesday 14th February, Yle 1 at 10.05am) about the way people greet each other (or not) and why we sometimes find it so hard to do. In some cultures it feels natural to say hello to anyone you pass when you are out for a walk and there is no problem in starting a conversation with a complete stranger on the bus or in the metro. Here, we often tend to be more reserved and do not speak to people unless we already know them. Why is that? What are we afraid of?  I don't know many people who claim to have too many friends, but we still remain afraid of talking to someone we don't know.

My philosophy has always been that it is worth taking the risk. The worst that can happen is that the other person doesn't respond...and at the end of the day, even if that happens, so what? Move on. On the other hand, the best that can happen is that you find a new friend, or in my case even a husband!

  

Eve and I only had two hours today to catch up on memories, shared adventures and the hundreds of things that have happened to us both since we last met, but in another way it was as if we had never been apart at all. That is when you know you are talking to a real friend. In fact, apart from being a wonderful and talented person, Eve is also single, and I have already booked myself in to be her bridesmaid as soon as she finds Mr Right. Any interested parties are very welcome to contact Eve direct... you can find her blog here http://blogit.yle.fi/eve-mantu, and I know she would be delighted to hear from you!

So be brave - friendship is important and valuable to all of us.... this weekend why don't you find the courage to start a conversation with a complete stranger, or alternatively look up someone you haven't seen in a while. Not only might you increase your own friendship circle... but you may very well be just what the other person has been waiting for.