Lately I’ve been thinking, as I often do, about friendship.
My friends are so important to me. I feel lucky and happy whenever I think about them.
And something that occurred to me is how much my life is enriched by having a variety of different people as friends. People who are not very much alike.
My friends (by which I mean people I see regularly, have dinner with, have in-depth conversations with – not just people I know), include:
- Ages from early 20s to 60s
- Atheists, Christians, Muslims, Jews
- Students, retirees, business owners, homemakers, people with jobs in many different fields and industries
- Single, dating, living together, engaged, married, divorced, gay, straight, with and without children
- Political views from ultra-conservative to uber-liberal.
Having these different people in my life stops me getting too set in my ways, or too sure of my opinions. I get challenged more, have to think through why I believe the things I do. I get to try a greater range of things and experience a wider understanding of life than I otherwise would.
Just a few years ago my friends were all very similar. I think it really narrowed my perspective.
I love that now I have so many different eyes and hearts through which to experience the world.
How Similar Are Your Friends?
How about you?
Are your friends a lot like you, or do you have a range of different people in your life?
How does it affect your outlook on the world?
I have friends in various age ranges. Most are single, independent. I am there when their having tough times and good times. We go for country drives, dine out, go to the movies and run errands. I remind them to be positive and have a positive outlook on life.
Most of my friends are very organized. Age range is wide. Most are Christian simply because I don’t work and met them through church. We share our talents. One taught me to quilt. Another shares my love of reading and we swap books. Another one is my girls night out movie or concert companion. I have learned much from their wisdom.
I have a diverse swath of friends, but I think they would all agree that it is important to be organized because it makes us more efficient.
I hardly ever see my friends. I go home after work, drink beer, watch the Dodger baseball games, and go to bed. I’m too tired for anything else.
Like you, I have friends of all ages, hues, religions, and philosophies. I live in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic city with many languages and much diversity. My world is vibrant and colorful, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!
I have friends in all age ranges, and with similiar and radically divergent positions on politics, religion, and gay/lesbian issues. I’m the liberal, and we have sort of worked it out over the years that we love each other, and those subjects are off limits, to avoid conflict over something which isn’t likely to change based on conversation. It’s not worth a friendship to try to change someone’s mind. They have to come to the determination based on life experience and being open minded. That doesn’t mean I don’t think I’m right : = ), just that I am not going to turn my back on important friendship over a subject which is highly personal. I believe we can learn a lot from everyone, and to try to build your world with only one lense to see it through is limiting and ill advised.