Tracks In The Dust

A Father's Advice About Learning the Mission of Life

22 Aug 2013

How Many Friends?

Flickr friends (Photo credit: Meer)

In the days of social media the term “friends” has taken on a whole different meaning. Years ago before the word became a measurement of success by accumulating the highest number possible, friends were more likely the genuine type.

Yes, there were those fleeting friends that came and went, some you may not be able to recall their last name or exactly where they were inserted in your life. But there were those friends that mean something even now. It doesn’t mean that you text them every day, or write emails to them even monthly, but they are “there” and they represent a place in your history that is significant.

Those friends may count for a large portion of who you are, or they had made an impression that was mutual as you traveled through the timeline (another word that has changed its meaning these days). They may be the closest confidant or someone who you shared experiences with that were beyond the every day trip to the shopping mall.

Friends can count (instead of counting friends) – and can make the difference. It is still amazing that in those cases you can meet up with them after a long absence, and start right where you left off. You can enjoy the news of what has happened in their lives as more that just a casual observer. You can embrace their family or friendships they have made along they way and appreciate that history.

There are those friends that are there for you, at a moments notice. No matter how silly it may seem in the afterthought, they were there for you in the moment, It provides one of the real purposes in your life as you live it.

There is this song that I remember from a long time ago (1975) from The Who. It reminds me that true friendships are precious and should be cherished. They take you as you are…