Friends How Many of Us Have Them?

"I'm just hanging out with a few friends."

How many times have we uttered those words, and at the same time realize that it is the furthest thing from the truth. Its amazing how loosely we use the word Friend. It's just an easier characterization then having to say, "I am with an associate." Or that some people you hang out with occasionally are out with you. But would you consider them friends? Probably not. We form associations with people, and they have qualities that one day might matriculate into friendship. But its a word that I find very hard to mean genuinely. It's hard for those that I meet in the future to enter my circle of friends. Considering that I have had some of the same friends since 7th grade. Or that I travel with friends that I met my freshman year in high school. It makes those people that come into my life for a short time feel more as acquaintances. Not to knock what they have the potential to be, or that the road to friendship is hard. There are just little things that you expect from your friends. They are your rock, they have seen you cry, they tell you about yourself even when you don't want to hear it, they are someone that you would ask for a loan from. They are your support system.

Friends know your last name, and they have heard your middle name. They just might not remember it. They know your birthday. You visit their parents or send them cards on holidays and special occasions. Your younger siblings become their younger siblings. I have friends that are as close to me as some family members. They are my extended family. The fact that I can be myself whenever or wherever with them is the greatest thing about friends. You don't have to put on a mask. You don't have to lie, you can just be you. And they don't care who you are today or tomorrow, they still want to be apart of your life. So without naming names, I am thankful for my true friends. The Crew. 10 years. And somehow we still can stand each other.

"Friends, how many of us have them. Friends, ones we can depend on. Friends, how many of us have them. Before we go any further, let's be FRIENDS!!!- Whodini