You’ve probably heard it a million times now: "choose your friends wisely." Even in college, you can still be influenced by the idea of “being cool.” This verse, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another,” has been popping up a lot in my life recently and, as I thought about it, I came to two realizations. We should surround ourselves with those who make us better people and draw us closer to our beliefs and we should love everyone around us like brothers and sisters, even if they're not the ones who we consider ourselves particularly close to.
I don’t mean that they should draw you closer to your beliefs by sharing all of the same opinions as you. Some of my closest friends hold very different views on things than I do, but they allow me to share those beliefs with them, even if they disagree. The choice to stand by my beliefs and live by them is mine, but the choice to stand by me while I do so is theirs, which I am very grateful for. Surrounding yourself with those who share the same beliefs as you is important so that you can strengthen and grow in them, but you needn’t seclude yourself in one “clique.” Spend some time with those who you care about and who you get along with well, but make sure that they make you feel like you are close to your beliefs by holding you accountable for being the person who you want to be.
This does, however, lead me to my other realization: that we should love those around us, even the ones who we’ve decided don’t fall into the category above. As in last week’s article, we should treat them with kindness. The thing is, kindness doesn’t just mean not being mean, although that is obviously part of it. It means reaching out to them when you can and helping them, even if it means going out of your way a little bit. Kindness is making someone feel loved or appreciated. People always say not to live your life for others. True, you have to care for yourself, have priorities, and be your own person. Stand by your beliefs, that was the whole point of choosing your friends wisely, right? But if we’re standing by our beliefs, then mine is selflessness. Don’t get me wrong, I am far from mastering it, but if you put it in your mind, you can get a little closer to it every day.
I’m so grateful that I have those people in my life. Surround yourself with people who you feel grateful for, but also make sure to appreciate and feel grateful for everyone around you.
