In Good Times and In Bad…

True friends stick with you in good times and in bad times. For better or for worse. For richer, for poorer. In sickness and in health.

Just like the marriage vows, a true friend can be counted on to be at your side when you need them the most. In fact, considering today’s divorce rate, a true friend may be there long after your spouse is gone. We all have fair weather friends who are only too glad to be there when things are great and then suddenly get busy when you need to lean on them for support. These are the same ones who will usually expect you to drop everything when they need you for something too.

We don’t have too many true friends in life. People are too absorbed with their own lives, problems, or themselves to want to be burdened or bothered with more issues from a friend. There are even some whose lives are nearly perfect and don’t want to mess it up with someone else’s trials and tribulations. So when you find someone who is willing to listen and be there for you, you have really been blessed. It’s especially wonderful when the support and encouragement is reciprocated.

I don’t know how many times I have heard different friends say to me, “I didn’t want to tell you because you have enough of your own problems.” The real test, the real meaning of being a friend is being there when you are needed the most, not just to share jokes, shopping tips or complain about work. I know, from my own experience, how much a friend can help you get through the most difficult life experiences, just by allowing me to talk or offering me some good, objective advice. They can talk you through a rough time and make you come out whole on the other side. If my friends didn’t come to me in times of trouble, I would feel bad to go to them when I needed support. It’s all about give and take. One day I am helped through a stressful time, and the next day I help my friend get through theirs. That’s what it’s all about. And hopefully, when enough time passes, we can look back at those times and laugh or just appreciate the fact that someone cared enough to stand by us, and hold our “hand” and listen with compassion.

A true friend wants to be there for you. You just have to let them be there.
　http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTcHT4zpAGs  Listen to this!