LESSON LEARNED FROM FRIENDSHIP AT 27

I am 27 years old. Single (laughs). Living young, wild and free. I’ve reached the quarterlife. Some people die young. Some are lucky enough to reach their sunset years. They say that with age comes wisdom. And I affirm it. Experiences really shape a person in many ways. Reaching this far, I’ve learned so much about friendship. I’ve been with different people coming from diverse backgrounds. I’ve been through many encounters with people who measure my patience and, at the same time, broaden my understanding about humanity.

People do come and go. Some may stay. Some may leave you out in the open. We can’t do anything about it. The least thing we can have a say is acceptance. That everyone is fighting for his own battle. That everyone has his own story to map and to create and to tell. If we’re going to sink in these realities about life, we’ll notice that we were born with different levels of reasons. Of these thousand or even million reasons, one good thing to stay alive is the joy that friendship brings into our lives. Some good and even bad things about friendship never last.

I used to be that shy, passive in conversations, and more reserved. My alter ego are those who are assertive and opinionated. However, through times, I’ve changed at least for the better. I’ve learned that, to succeed in the complex arena of friendship, we have to invest in communication—open line of communication. Others can reach us depending on how wide or narrow that door we open for them. It’s just that being open and pronouncing our feelings, regardless of how good or bad it may be, finds its way to let people see us as individuals more than just friends. I’ve learned that real friendship doesn’t dwell on our ideals. We may exclude some people in our circles because we don’t like them, but these people would, in a way, teach us that everything runs indeed in circles. There are some we expect would help us during our hard times but others come in instead. We don’t like the background of some people but this might be the reason that they become unique individuals. That is the irony of friendship. There is sarcasm in people that sometimes bound us not to refuse but to wolf it down.

Not good people will stay and stand by you. On the contrary, not all bad people will leave you. The reality is that we all have the power to choose. To decide when to stay and to let go of someone is entirely a subjective thing. And that power of understanding is likewise of equal importance other than choice.

Friendship. Well, it’s always a two-way street. There has to be an equal share of giving and receiving. Of the seven billion people on Earth, we all have the power to choose whom we’re going to share our life with and that power to understand if some things don’t go our own way. For in the end, it all boils down to love and kindness. The former is a physiological need—the grandest force. But the latter is a choice. So, keep loving. Be kind. And live life. #