NO NEW FRIENDS

There's a time in every young adults life when they have to take a moment and evaulate the people that surround them. You begin to take a closer look at those that you call friends and then wonder, should that really be their title? How, exactly, did they earn that title? Today the word "friend" is thrown around as loosely as the word "love", and if we aren't careful we could be letting people taint our sacred circle of friendship.

I was recently in a situation where I learned, first hand, the importance of knowing who my true friends were. I trusted people to be there for me when I needed them, and in true hater form, they let me down. I didn't need money or a place to stay. I didn't need to borrow someone's car, all I needed was for them to treat me like a friend and respect me. I went seraching for something
in people that should have come naturally. I know better than that, but I was in a new place with new people and was trying to do what the Romans do... but this ain't Rome... 

 I grew up in a time when parents were the ultimate source of knowledge.... At least until I figured out that I knew everything myself. My mother made certain that I understood that "everybody ain't your friend."She would go on and on about not trusting everyone, being quiet and remaining observant of others nature. She taught me to have what we called a discerning spirit, which basically means to be able to tell the difference between the real and the fake, and then adjusting accordingly. These were lessons that were taught to my mother from her mother, and then to both me and my younger sister. The one thing that I did pay attention to was the fact that both my mother and grandmother had very small  circles of friends. My sister and I are both the same way.  It wasn't until I was older that I began to realize exactly why the matriarchs in my family had such small circles of friends, yet were able to maintain such huge networks of people that just ginuinely enjoyed being around them.  The answer is so simple... they keeps it real.

How many real friends do you have? How many "friends do you have that would drop whatever is going on in their world to be by your side when you need it the most; and not just to be nosey either. How many people can say that they have life long friends that they have known since kindergarten (Day One's)?  It feels good to know that I have the type of friends to let me know about myself when I need it and encourage me when I do well. So I may not necessarily need any new friends, but just like I have a certain standards when it comes to dating and relationships... I have standards when it comes to friends and associates as well. 

The point is not to encourage people not to gain new "friends" through out life, rather know the difference between friends and REAL friends.