In a world where we are constantly promoting ourselves, are we forgetting to promote friendship? I hate to say it, but we are living in a generation where convenience trumps thoughtfulness. It seems as if people have forgotten what it means to truly show consideration to those they care about. It is often said that your twenties are a time to be selfish. I don't disagree with this statement, however, your twenties are also a time to develop life-long friendships.
Being a friend is not something you can do without effort. Like anything in life, being a friend requires energy from both people in the friendship. Since many of us are so busy, being a friend has often times boiled down to communicating via social media. While I am an avid Instagram user and Tweeter, I have realized those are not platforms for maintaining friendships. A handwritten note can mean more to someone than a text, a birthday card can mean more than an Instagram collage and a sincere, "how are you?" can mean a lot more than a snap chat every now and then. It's nice to know that the "friends" you are investing yourself in, are also investing in you.
The friends who stick out in my mind are the ones who genuinely listen when you talk to them. Not the ones who are endlessly scrolling on their phones while you're having dinner. The friends who stick out in my mind are the ones who remember your birthday without the help of Facebook. The friends who stick out in my mind are the ones who are willing to take time out of their day to make yours a little brighter, not the ones who are always saying they are too busy. The friends who stick out in my mind don't view you as competition or a backup plan, but instead, couldn't imagine going out without you. The friends who stick out in my mind are the friends who compliment you without expecting a compliment in return. The friends who stick out in my mind do all of these things because they are thoughtful things to do, not out of self interest.
Our friends are the ones who make us who we are. They build us up, keep us laughing and support us through it all. Our friends are the ones who we go to when we need time away from family, school or "adulting." We trust them with our secrets and confide in them when we are sad. Without them, we wouldn't know how to stay sane. In a world where we are so self absorbed have we forgotten how much our friends truly mean to us? At the end of the day, let's all be friends who stick out in our friends' minds. After all, why shouldn't we be?
