Please call me UB, if you want to be good friends. It is said that there are multiple levels of friendship. No, I am not talking about those on social networks like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, nor does this include so-called frenemies. I am referring to the people you see and with whom you meet on a regular basis.
Thousands of years ago, Aristotle described the types of friendships. The ancient Greek philosopher and scientist have had more followers than any so-called influencer today. Since then, many others have tried to describe the meaning of friendship.
When contemporary researchers quantify friendship types, they usually come up with several levels of relationships There are many forms of friendship, but it's quality, not quantity that counts, according to one of my LinkedIn contacts, Professor Suzanne Degges-White, Ph.D.
The acquaintances are the people we see quite regularly that we know, at least well enough to make a little idle talk, but we really don't have the emotional desire or attachment necessary to deepen a connection.
Casual friends are usually those with whom we spend time in shared activities or with whom we meet regularly and with whom we have come to know enough to feel ready to call this person a friend. We may love all the members of our painting class, laugh with them during meetings and even go out with them outside of class, but they are people we probably wouldn't hang out with if they didn't share this particular activity together.
Close friends almost always begin as acquaintances who become casual friends and with whom we have enough mutual admiration and affinity with whom we share a little more about ourselves, share a little more about themselves and continue to enjoy knowing each other. and spend time together. These are the folks we call when life stinks so much that we want to vent, hide or run away. Close friends are those we trust with many of our secrets and friends who endure even when we are in a bad mood or need to speak at an ungodly hour when our Luck goes south.
Close friends are the most connected friends' anyone can have. These are the friends that we let into the inner sanctuary of our heart and our mind, which we trust with the deepest secrets, and know that we will never be disappointed or betrayed. These friendships are worth more than gold. Some people of this kind of friendship with their partner, but that is not always the case. A woman describes that her close friends are her soul sisters and her partner knew that when they got married, the soul sisters were going to be part of their family for life.
Useful friendships are friendships that some of us would simply call convenience friendships. These are the people with whom we share the duty of sharing the car, watching your home while out of town because we will need them to pick up our mail when we go on vacation next month. It may be that the woman with whom you sit on the train every day will never find any other reason to enjoy your company, but it is familiar, pleasant and safe.
Convenience or utility friendships are the people we trust and who we can trust for small tasks and the willingness to help as long as the investment expectations are not too large. Once the needs are no longer present for assistance to be valuable, these relationships are likely to evaporate quickly.
Pleasure friendships are those friendships that consist of simply enjoying each other's company and having a good time together. This type of friendship includes the neighbors with whom you like to drink drinks on your terrace on summer evenings or the crowd with which you always have coffee after a meeting of the reading club. These are the people you trust to keep your mood light or your mind away from your problems when there are concerns that bother you. They can be the Sunday afternoon soccer crowd, Bunco's monthly brigade, the moms you enjoy hanging out with during sporting events. They can be the people who show up at the same parties they invite you to and who always make you feel welcome. You can spend your whole life with this kind of friends: they bring you happiness and your presence has the same effect on them. There are no deeper requirements for any of you in this relationship. Then, as long as friendship remains a pleasure, it can last.
Friendships of good people are friendships that are based on mutual respect, admiration and appreciation for the qualities that each of you brings to the relationship. These may begin based on proximity, shared interests or the stage of shared life, but the spark between the two friends ignites and the opportunity is taken to increase self-disclosure and mutual connection. In a friendship of goodness, you value who that friend really is.
With A Little Help From My Friends (Remastered 2009) https://youtu.be/0C58ttB2-Qg
Elton John - Friends https://youtu.be/17u9mxdvQEo
Animals can also have friends. 101 Dalmatians - Pongo and Perdita https://youtu.be/fuYZ21R8-bQ
