I have very few people that I would truly term \u201cfriends\u201d.\u00a0 I have many acquaintances, and many people I like enough to spend hours or even days with.\u00a0 But true friends?\u00a0 Were I to count them in the age old method\u2026 well, suffice it to say I would have fingers to spare \u2013 on my first hand.<\/p>\n
Now, I\u2019m no social animal, and quite likely have fewer friendships than those who are \u2013 yet I don\u2019t think the difference will be as great as might be imagined.<\/p>\n
What is it that makes for true friendship?\u00a0 Simply liking someone, and having them like you in return, is not enough.\u00a0 The bond of friendship is far more powerful than that.<\/p>\n
What other factors are needed, and how important are they?<\/p>\n
Respect, vital.\u00a0 Without respect you can\u2019t possibly be real friends.\u00a0 Losing respect destroys friendship.<\/p>\n
Trust, critical.\u00a0 Personally, I think this might be the most important element.\u00a0 You have to be able to trust them not to judge you when you reveal your deepest, darkest secrets.<\/p>\n
Time, important.\u00a0 Friendship takes an investment of time \u2013 how much time is not as important as granting it when it\u2019s needed.<\/p>\n
Commitment, important.\u00a0 This is tied to trust.\u00a0 You have to remain committed to your friends, and know they are committed to you.\u00a0 Commitment doesn\u2019t mean they blindly take your side.\u00a0 It means both of you are committed to the well-being of the other, and if you see the other making a poor choice you\u2019ll warn, or even stop them.\u00a0 A friend who remains silent when you do something stupid, is no friend at all.<\/p>\n
One of the interesting things about the friendships I have and hold dear, is that massive periods of absence can pass with no contact.\u00a0 Yet when we get back in touch, it\u2019s like no time has passed at all, we simply pick up and carry on.<\/p>\n
Friendship is truly special, treasure yours \u2013 however many, or few, you have.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I have very few people that I would truly term \u201cfriends\u201d.\u00a0 I have many acquaintances, and many people I like enough to spend hours or even days with.\u00a0 But true friends?\u00a0 Were I to count them in the age old method\u2026 well, suffice it to say I would have fingers to spare \u2013 on my […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=467"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/cgayling.com\/malmaxa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}