I’ve been thinking about different periods in my life. Right now I have good friends, but it wasn’t always that way. For a while, years ago, when I moved to a new city, I had no friends, for at least a year. Eventually I got some friends, but then my two best friends moved to another city. I was left with some “bad” friends, and by that I mean that they just didn’t get me. I had to choose between keeping the friends who didn’t get me and seemed to make my life miserable, or being by myself for a while.
I chose to be by myself, and to have no friends for a period of time. I watched a lot of movies. I worked a lot. I was lonely sometimes. But being with “friends” who drained my happiness left me feeling lonely too. At least, being by myself, I knew where I could go when I needed cheering up – a local bookstore was my choice. I knew where I could go to be with people without having to really talk to them. There was a wonderful independent cinema theater near where I lived. I decided to not settle for having “bad” friends. When I moved out of that city, I knew what I wanted in a friendship. For the most part, I have got that now.
Be picky about whom you hang around with in your social circle. Make sure they are the ones who bring you up and make you better. You can respond by doing the same for them. It makes a win-win relationship.
Whether it’s the car we buy or the friends we make,
it’s always a choice. Make it a good one!
Julie My Way 