{Friends are the Family you Choose}
... To paraphrase Edna Buchanan. There is nothing quite like knowing you can be your true, unabashed, carefree self and know that there will be no judgment, no criticism, only love on the other side.
Friendship is a powerful thing. I've always prided myself, if not on anything else, on being the type of person that is worthy of being a good friend. I place value in traits I look for in others - traits I seek in friendships, in relationships in general:
- Trustworthyness
- Trust
- Loyalty
- Compassion
- Love
- Open Heart
- Open Ears
- Sense of Adventure
- Sense of Humor
- Generousity
I bet one or more of you would look at this list and say, "well, yeah!" It seems pretty basic a concept. Those are pretty important traits for anyone, right?
Here's what Wikipedia says about friendship:
In a comparison of personal relationships, friendship is considered to be closer than association, although there is a range of degrees of intimacy in both friendships and associations...
Value that is found in friendships is often the result of a friend demonstrating the following on a consistent basis:
- The tendency to desire what is best for the other
- Sympathy and empathy
- Honesty, perhaps in situations where it may be difficult for others to speak the truth, especially in terms of pointing out the perceived faults of one's counterpart
- Mutual understanding and compassion
- Trust in one another (able to express feelings - including in relation to the other's actions - without the fear of being judged); able to go to each other for emotional support
- Positive reciprocity - a relationship is based on equal give and take between the two parties.
I believe that friendship essentially involves a distinctive kind of concern for your friend, a concern which might reasonably be understood as a kind of love, and who doesn't love love? Just try Googling "friend love" and see what photos you find. There's lots of love out there... “It seems to me that love is everywhere.”
Yes, I love my friends. I tell them so on the regular. And I know that my abundance of affection rubs some the wrong way, but I can't help it. When I know that I love someone, I tend to show it to the world.
So, my friends, you are loved. I love you.
