Sometimes, what you see is not always what you get. Finding a group of truly loyal and honest friends is not easy in this world. It comes much easier to some than it does for others. Sooner or later, most friends leave for their own ulterior motives. There are a million different reasons someone you once considered your best friend would abandon you in your time of need. I will not get into that today. Rather, it is important not to be mad at this former friend. Take time to reflect and be happy with the five, 10 or even 15 or more years of friendship they gave you. Just know they have positively shaped you into the person you are today. As the infamous Dr. Seuss once said, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”
Good friends are hard to come by, and so are loyal friends and family, but they aren’t the only people that can help you grow. Enemies can often times be more helpful than some so-called friends. Looking back, the quote, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer,” can be very helpful to those with an open mind. Enemies are people that ridicule and criticize you simply because they do not like you. Your enemies may be the popular group that peaks in high school or the group of coworkers that spread lies about you even though you did nothing to them.
The most common reasons of this kind of bullying from an enemy is spite, jealousy or a lack of confidence in oneself. In turn, confident people don’t seek out the demise of others because they are too busy perfecting their own crafts. Knowledge plus confidence equals open-mindedness.
If you are making enemies in this life, it means you are standing up for what you believe in, even in the face of doubt. Finding this bravery and confidence in oneself is key to helping someone realize that they can accomplish anything they put their mind to, no matter who they are. Another key is forgiveness, and forgiving your enemies will make you stronger. It is said that keys open doors. These doors open up to new relationships, these relationships turn into real opportunities and the right opportunity breeds a lifetime of success.
Do not forget that the best learning experiences are through our worst experiences. Your past enemies will teach you who you can and cannot trust. Do not keep these enemies close in friendship, but learn from their mistakes and grow stronger from them. They’ll transform you into something you never thought you could be. It is up to you whether this transformation creates a strong, confident individual or a weak, lazy individual incapable of succeeding in this life.
