A few weeks before the New Year, I enjoyed an annual birthday outing with a girlfriend.  We celebrate every year because we feel fortunate to have been each other’s confidant and cheerleader for more than fifty years.  I asked if she remembered how we became friends and she said, “You, Judy and I were in the same bunk at Camp Milldale.  We told our mothers we liked each other and they planned get-togethers for us.”  Our moms were arranging “play dates” decades ago!  We laughed and reminisced about our adolescence and adulthood.  We’ve experienced every phase of life— dating, college, career decisions, weddings, divorces, employment, home purchases, births, illnesses, deaths, disappointments and victories.  We know that sharing and caring have helped us navigate through calm and rough waters over the years.

Recently, I received an e-mail from a high school buddy, a personal trainer, with whom I’d reconnected at a luncheon.  The gist of the communication highlighted the medical benefits of friendship. The article she sent said, “Spending time with girlfriends is as beneficial to health as jogging or working out. Failure to create and maintain quality personal relationships with other humans is as dangerous to our physical health as smoking.  Girlfriend time helps us create more serotonin—a neurotransmitter that helps combat depression and can create a general feeling of well-being.”

Life-long friends are indeed a treasure, but friendships can begin at any age and time.  Here are a few suggestions for connecting:

• Enroll in a class (cooking, dance, foreign language, etc.).
• Volunteer for a cause you feel passionate about.
• Join a gym or the JCC.
• Learn a new skill.
• Teach someone else a skill you’ve mastered.
• Revisit a hobby.
• Participate in an activity or event at a synagogue or community center.
• Join a club (bowling, book, etc.).
• Attend a lecture.

It’s a new year, so make a plan to get together with an old friend or a potential new friend.  You could start by taking a walk:  schmoozing and exercising, the perfect combination for improved health and guaranteed to enhance your attitude, stamina and outlook in 2011.

By Karen Schloss, Volunteer Coordinator, Jewish Big Brother Big Sister Matching Program, Jewish Community Services, Baltimore, MD

To learn more about how JCS can help you solve life’s puzzles, visit http://www.jcsbaltimore.org or call 410-466-9200.  Jewish Community Services is an agency of THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore.