The Power of “Friendship”: The Unspoken Gift of True Friendship
By Evelyn Chen

“A friend is someone who knows all about you and still loves you.” – Elbert Hubbard

How blessed we are to have even one person we can truly call a friend!

Some people dismiss friendship as unimportant; they believe that having friends is nice but not having them is “also not an issue.” But I say this: those people have simply never encountered a real friend. If they had, those words would never leave their mouths.

I consider myself truly blessed. I had so many friends growing up that I (shamefully) admit I sometimes took them for granted. I didn’t just have friends; I had real friends; the ones who are there through thick and thin, and even the “you don’t want them around, but they show up anyway” kind of friends. I never truly apprehended how lucky I was until I was a little older.

It was right about the time my parents’ marriage was failing. My friends started concocting excuses to come visit. I remember feeling irritated, as having them around meant I had to entertain them, preventing me from doing what I liked most: reading or sleeping.

What I didn’t know then was that they weren’t there to disturb me; they were there to ensure I was okay. They were there to safeguard my peace and to simply hold my hands if I needed to cry or scream.

My friends have stayed with me to this day. We constantly keep in touch and though coordinating a meet-up is always an arduous task, we prioritise making time for each other. What I realised about these childhood friends is that they know everything about me and still love me. They defend me when I’m not around and remain loyal regardless of the circumstances. I am so lucky!

Have I lost friends along the way? Yes, but isn’t that just a natural part of life? I don’t think falling out of friendship is a conscious choice, but like love, sometimes bonds just fade. Perhaps we’ve grown and my quirkiness is not so winsome anymore, lol! Maybe their patience for waiting on me has dipped as we’ve gotten older and the novelty has worn off. Whatever the reasons, it’s okay. I don’t begrudge anyone for choosing to move on.

I cannot imagine my life without my friends. I have grown up with them by my side, and they stand with me till today. As I mentioned, life does get in the way, but the realisation that they are always there is a comfort I vow to never take for granted again. I vow to appreciate my friends and to do as much for them as they do for me, every day of my life.

I am a better person because of them. I am also admittedly a little spoilt because of them; they always seem to accede to me and I’m not entirely sure why that is. I wouldn’t change a thing!

To all the people I call my friends, I love you and thank you for loving me despite all my imperfections!

Words to learn

dismiss– treat as unworthy of serious consideration; to disregard

encountered– come across or meet (especially unexpectedly)

apprehended– realised; grasp mentally; perceive; understand

concocting– making; create or devise (an excuse or story) typically to deceive

safeguard– protect from harm or damage; guard

arduous- involving or requiring strenuous effort; difficult and tiring

winsome– attractive or appealing in a fresh, innocent way

accede– to agree to a demand, request or treaty

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