Early on in my life, I learned the values of friendship. This wasn’t directly through social interactions, because questionably my only friend at Robert M. Pyles elementary school still inevitably succumbed to societal pressures of feeling the need to fit in. In other words, he WAS* technically my friend, but when we were around other people he would pick on me in an effort to try to one-up his position in society. It was sad, but I had to deal with it one way or another as a kid.
I took solace in trying to strive for the friendly interactions I witnessed on the small screen whenever I got home from school – The strength of Arthur and Buster, Ash and Misty, and Bart and Milhouse always struck me as something I wanted in life. I had a best friend in 4th grade I nearly achieved this with (he was white, just like me). Sadly, he moved away, and it took years for me to achieve the same kind of relationship I once had with him.
With the eventual shift from adolescence into the awkward teenage years, I began confiding in more people, and developing relationships that would turn into something truly special. It’s important to recognize the values of all friendship – regardless of how deep the connections might inevitably be. Some people prefer to have fewer friendships that are deep than a ton of friendships that are inherently shallow. I personally prefer a combination of the two – the abilities by which to healthily communicate to someone you are close to intertwined with the ability to engage in conversations with a mere stranger are two inherent traits I wish to keep working on, in an effort to further my self-progress in the world.
What often happens in a friendship is the repeating process of drifting away. This can happen when a friend moves, or when people simply grow apart. It’s important to recognize the value of friendship far beyond its initial benefits – the long-term repercussions of having someone care for you not only strengthens your self-esteem, it enhances your social progress within any given society.
It’s also important to not abandon your old friends when you get new ones. The people before your present “group of peers” got you to where you are. Every direction you take in life has been influenced by the environment in which you came from. This is why I highly respect the poem below, written by Joseph Parry:
Make new friends, but keep the old;
Those are silver, these are gold.
New-made friendships, like new wine,
Age will mellow and refine.Friendships that have stood the test –
Time and change – are surely best;
Brow may wrinkle, hair grow gray,
Friendship never knows decay.For ‘mid old friends, tried and true,
Once more we our youth renew.
But old friends, alas! may die,
New friends must their place supply.Cherish friendship in your breast –
New is good, but old is best;
Make new friends, but keep the old;
Those are silver, these are gold.
