When we were in middle and high school, having a ton of friends was what made you “cool.” More often than not, many of those “friends” would abandon us when times got tough and we actually needed them. They were our party friends or the people who it was fun to just sit and laugh with, but they weren’t the friends we could call at 1 in the morning when we were having an emotional breakdown about what we wanted to do with our lives. As we’ve gotten older and matured a bit, I think most of us have learned that having a few friends that care about you and will be there for you is much more important than having a hundred friends who couldn’t care less about your life or what happens as long as there’s a good party involved.

When I was in high school, I didn’t have many really good friends. I had a ton of acquaintances but only a few good friends that I would trust with my secrets. The same stands true now that I’m in college, but I don’t value those acquaintances as much as I used to. Somewhere between the time I graduated high school and now, I’ve realized that I would rather have friends that put just as much effort into maintaining and keeping our friendship as I did instead of having friends who talked to me and invited me places when it was convenient for them.

I’ve learned that your quality friends are the ones you least expect when you meet them. At first, you’re just casual friends who trade lunches in seventh grade-- then you’re working together in high school and somehow you end up telling each other everything about yourselves without fear of judgement. It’s a nice feeling being able to tell your true friends everything about you and know that they won’t judge you, no matter what the situation.

Quality friends are pretty much all that I choose to surround myself with these days. They’re the ones that I know will be honest with me when I ask them their opinion on something, they’re the ones that I know will call me out if I do something I probably shouldn’t and they’re the ones I know I can call no matter what time it is and vent about my life. My quality friends keep me grounded when I get a little too crazy.

I know that no matter what, I have a handful of people who would be there for me in a heartbeat if I needed them. It doesn’t matter that we live in different states or that we’re in different time zones. It’s nice to know that there are people who actually care about you rather than having a ton of people who remember you exist only when they want to. As I’ve grown up, the concept of “quality over quantity” has made more sense every day. I’m just fine with having a handful of girls I can call on to be there for me when I’m not feeling like myself. They’re the people I’ll still talk to once we’re all married and have separate lives. My quality friends are my lifelong friends and I wouldn’t trade them for the world.