On friendship...

Sometimes I wonder what kind of friend I am. I’m sure you wonder about that too regarding yourself. As one gets older, you find that it’s harder to make long lasting friends now than you did when you were younger. Or perhaps it’s just me who feels this way? OK then I suppose it’s just me. Indeed, upon reflection, i see that my current friends aren’t just friends i made a few months ago. Those that i regard as really good friends are those friends that i made both in high school and in my early university years. Why? I suppose it’s because these are the people with whom I have matured with in terms of emotional and intellectual growth. We've shared a lot of experiences together, both bad and good, and that’s what kept and still keeps our friendship going. Of course, friends, even good ones, can’t really know everything there is to know about one another, but I think, as we grow older, we've learned to tolerate one another and have at least attempted to understand our differences.

However, a lot people don’t have it so lucky. I read a novel the other day that resonated in my mind long after I was done reading. I won’t be mentioning the book's name here because this is not a review site and I don’t intend to analyze or examine the book's theme or anything. But the novel got me thinking about friends in general. 

Who are your friends, and what are they in your life for? 

  Are they in your life because of what they have to offer you/ vice versa? 
     Are they in your life so they can feel better about themselves /vice versa? Are they just passing through? Or are they there to stay for good? 

What exactly defines a true friend?

There are many phases and stages in life, and in each phase, friends come and friends go. Only the true ones stick with you at all times. Thing is, we might not even know who the true friends are until, somehow, by some misfortune, we lose them. It might be a little difficult to spot a true friend, but it shouldn't be too hard to spot a not-too-great one. Friends who are with you just for what you can do for them, are, to put it mildly, not so great. Friends that try to pull you down with them when they find themselves at their lowest are not so great. Friends who NEVER celebrate your success with you but try to find a failure in you, are not so great. Friends who never offer encouragement, support or compassion in any way or form, are not good friends. And finally, there are friends who are nice, even offer support sometimes. But then, somehow with their words, they try to suffocate, make you feel small, inadequate, unimportant, dull, and unintelligent. Those friends are most definitely not good friends.

Sometimes you may not know who your true friends may be right away. But you can eliminate those whom you think shouldn't be.

This is what that novel made me thinking about today...

LaterrR!