Friendship

By Stephanie Ostwald

What a wide range of friends you can have nowadays! So many options to meet real or even virtual people. You can find them next to you while traveling or surfing on the Internet (do you remember the precious time when we had pen friends?).

But beware of Greeks bearing gifts – people who take your track expecting benefits of being your best buddy. They promise you heaven and earth but as soon as they recognize that there is nothing to get they disappear. Often the nicest persons are defrauded by these subjects – especially on the Internet where everyone can pretend to be whatever they likes – because they tend to overlook bad characteristics.

But let me speak about the good ones: Some bump into your life and disappear at the same speed – but leave a splendid memory. Some sneak into it and become matter of course – but not until they leave you notice that you miss them. There are friends “at first sight” who stay by your side until the end. Sometimes, when life challenges you very hard, people who were acquaintances develop to become friends because they are able to help you through.

I have cronies from childhood, from bartender’s union, from hotel trade school,  from my times in different hotels and restaurants I worked in, new chaps  from various branches of the bank I work for now,  Facebook buddies, blog pals, friends I got to know accidentally and not to forget about clients who became friends as well.

You have everyday friends and there are some you just see once or twice a year, some you can have wonderful discussions with, some you can party with, some you can laugh and cry with. Friends who help you a lot, who need your help frequently. We love them all in a certain way.

My very best crony loves to provoke me until I freak out. He exactly knows the buttons to press – just because he loves my face and my flashing eyes when I get enraged. And, of course, he loves my revenge. We are holding the mirror in front of each other’s faces to show us our weak spots – and can laugh about or even work on them. 

We know every nut bolt and screw about each other since hotel trade school, which led us into different businesses, but we still feel like students when we are together. People shake their heads when we start giggling like idiots in public because we had the same funny thought.

How many friends can a person have? Grumpy coevals do not allure so many – shiny, happy fellows attack crowds. It seems to be an individual matter. I often hear people say” you just have a handful of real friends”.

In my opinion there are various kinds of friendship. Those friends, who love you right the way you are, know your all and everything, recognize your mood by a fugacious glance at your direction are really rare.

But sometimes you do not need those friends. Sometimes you don’t want anybody to check out how you are feeling because you need diversion and want to have fun. With your best pals there is a certain risk that you start discussions about the problems you wanted to forget about.

I believe that all people who get closer perform a task in each other’s lives. They are sent to fight alongside, to show differing options, to shelter, to guide, to open the heart, to heal and so much more one can imagine.

My friendly advice: be open-hearted, open-minded and have a look at who life wants to introduce to. It is worth it – I promise!

All views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect Morocco News Tribune’s editorial policy.