good friends are hard to come by..

Who do you think the hardest people to find are.? Celebrities? Your other half? Well I suppose both are hard to find, but then again, celebrities are people just like us. And our other half, well that's something that should find us. That is something we shouldn't look for. Instead, we should look for something deeper, more meaningful that will last a life time. Beside the other half, there stands the idea of friendship. Friendship is probably something we all take for granted, thinking that those certain people will always be there. But let me tell you something from firsthand experience. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "the ultimate measure of a person is not where they stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where they stand in times of challenge and controversy." Take a minute and think about what these powerful words from one of the great leaders of all time has said. The measure of a person is not where they stand at the memories, the good times, or the convenient times. It is where they stand during the the rough, ugly, and hectic times. Ask yourself, when the world walks out on you, who walks in?

We've all had our share of friends, from our youth in elementary and middle school, to co-workers and college experiences. We remember the High School cliques we'd walk in the halls with and eat lunch with. We remember the ones we'd share interests with such as sports, church, or culture. So as we look at the past, and think about the present, who's really our friend? Who really knows us for us. It seems like we've all had those friends we used to call best friends, or at least close. But somewhere down the road, things fell apart like a new item that deteriorates and depreciates. It's human nature for things to fall apart, and we are often left questioning, what happened, who's to blame, and why... Maybe we took a wrong turn, or we did something we shouldn't have. Maybe they got into a relationship, and left us to rot. No, our close friends shouldn't do that, but did they?

Now I'm not trying to get on anyones case about losing a friend, or leaving a friend, because we all have our reasons. We all have our excuses, and we all have our own characteristics. I am trying to say is that, good friends are hard to come by. My communications professor told us, "You know, I only have five friends.." The class laughed at first. But then he finished," Five people I would die for, five people that would willingly die for me. The rest of the people are just acquaintances." I don't know how the rest of the class interpreted his statement, but I believe what he said is completely, totally 100 percent true. It doesn't matter how many you actually have, but just know what ones are true and what ones are fake.

See this world is filled with billions, and among those billions each and every person is different. That means, there's a world filled with all kinds of people. So be open to meeting everyone because you'll never know what your find. The best find is something you weren't looking for. If I could advise you, I'd say to learn from each and everyone you meet somehow, because in the long run you won't experience it all in your life. And while searching among the billion people in this world, the best reliable friends are the ones you can trust. Trust goes such a long way, but it is the honest factor when you look at your real friends and your acquaintances. The ones you trust with your life, and vice versa, are the ones that will be with you the rest of your life.

One thing that we all have and will always experience is drama. Yes, drama. And maybe it's high school drama, or kiddish drama, either way, it's like the kryptonite of a friendship. Drama is the thing that will tear a friendship apart in an instant...And it's not the depth of the drama, but rather how people handle the drama. I think the main thing that happens when dealing with drama is we get too caught up with what other people will think of us when the drama is out in the open. We always think, well what will they think of me if I'm this way or that way. But when handling drama, remember the truth or the facts, and the overall circumstances of the problem. Is it worth losing a friendship over? Is it worth all the tears and stress? You could say, why the hell are we here in the first place? Most drama is avoidable by one simple solution. Openness. Openness with the relations to communication. If there's something he or she did to you that you didn't like, let them know. Don't let the popularity of the person or the persons background intimidate you. Like you, they are only human. Reguardless of how they handle situations in the past, realize that there is a right and there is a wrong, and if they're in the wrong let them know. If you're wrong, admit defeat. Stop avoiding your pride and ego, and just apologize. Nobody likes to admit they're wrong, but if you are than be a grown adult and admit to it. Yeah it sounds easier than it really is, but that's probably the easiest way to handle a situation without losing respect.

All in all, my view on drama is avoid it if possible. If it isn't avoidable, than talk it out and communicate. Apologize if need be, and go from there. If the other person is too stubborn to admit they're wrong or accept your apology, forget it. Let it go and move on. It shows a lot in a person's characteristics if they're wrong and won't admit to it. But it's nothing to big, and there's a lot more friends out there. Sometimes it can be heard, especially with the close close close friends that have been there from day one. But the closer they are, the easier it should be to talk to em. Friends have value, and you have value to them. The best friends are the ones that are there no matter what. True friends are like stars, you might not always see them, but you know they're there. We've all had our friends come and go, so they're more like acquaintances. The ones that mean the most are the ones that we're willing to risk everything for and vice versa. Great Friends are extended family, so if you don't think they share the same views and morales as your family, chances are they aren't going to be a great friend..

Know that having a great friend requires one thing from you, and that's be a great friend in return. If you're a good friend and people abuse the privileges, they don't deserve you. If you stay a good friend and your efforts go unrecognized, I must say I'm truly sorry. It's your choice to stay or go. You're a good friend but sometimes people don't know what they have until it's gone. And in the end, we both lose out which sucks, but if that's what happens, you can't really do anything about it. So be careful who you trust these days because good friends are hard to find. The measure of a person is one that is trying to solve the problem with you, not running away. If somebody ever hurts you , it is later up to you if you forgive them or not. But remember, "fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me." Like I said earlier, there are billion people in this world, so like a relationship, don't get caught up with just one person. If they hurt you and they don't apologize, chances are they don't care. I know this blog is all over the place with friends...It's such a big topic! But the main points were to be careful who you trust because people will abuse it. The greatest friends are the ones we trust though. Don't get caught up with just one friend, but vary it out. Good friends will build over a period of time, you just have to know the person completely before you trust them. "The ultimate measure of a person is not where they stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where they stand in times of challenge and controversy." -MLK... " Be true to yourself ,and be true to others. To handle yourself, use your head. To handle others, use your heart." E. Roosevelt.