Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Word of the Day #15: Friendship

A word we all know, but sometimes we take these things for granted because like all things we like are there at a moments notice.

I find things like friendship (and family) become more important as you grow older and if you have to live far away from them. Since my move, I have missed my friends and family a lot. 

You will get a lot of definitions of what friendship it and it has different meanings to different people, so is it really fair just to use the dictionary term?

Meaning: The state of being a friend; association as friends: To value a person's friendship

I really like this part from Wikipedia tho:

Value that is found in friendships is often the result of a friend demonstrating the following on a consistent basis:


Friendship is definitely a give and take relationship. I is taking because you need certain things from you friends, like companionship, advice, help you move house. But when you do 'take' you should have in mind that your friend is being altruistic. As a friend you should know not to take too much

On the other side, when you are the giver, you should be altruistic and help as much as you can within limits and to not expect something back. As soon as you expect something back it is no longer friendship and becomes an arrangement or alliance. 

So here is my own definition of a friend and friendship. Yours could be the same or it could be different.

  • A friend is someone you can rely on.
  • A friend is someone you can trust.
  • Friendship is something that is forged over a long period of time (not in a vacuum of time)
  • Friendship is not bound by distance
  • In time, hopefully you get a symbiotic relationship out of it

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