Let’s talk about friends and friendship today!

What friendship really means?

Friendship means a
bond between people
that connects them and
lets them share each
other's feelings and
thoughts. Someone is
your friend if you feel like
you can tell them
anything, and love to
spend time with them.
What is the difference between friend and acquaintance?
An acquaintance is someone
you know and spend time with
occasionally.
A friend is a person with
whom you have a strong bond
of mutual affection (sympathy
of each person for the other).
Friendship is always deeper
and more intimate than mere
acquaintance.
 What is a toxic friendship?
“Toxic friendships happen when one
person is being emotionally harmed or
used by another, making the relationship
more of a burden than support.
A toxic friendship can increase your
blood pressure, lower your immunity,
and affect your mental health. ”
Suzanne Degges-White, is the author of
the term of Toxic Friendships.
Answer the questions:
• Is it important to have friends?
• Which is more important to have many
friends or to have some but true friends?
• Is it easy for you to make new friends?
• Is it easy or difficult to be a loyal friend?
• Can we live a happy life without friends?
• Do you have many friends?
• Who is your best friend?
Agree or disagree:
• Friends make life good.
• Friends provide the scaffolding (platform) that
makes it not just bearable but fun.
• Friends give us a sense of meaning and purpose
(goal) and are a source of security, self-esteem
(self-respect) and happiness.
• Almost nothing predicts (prognosticate) how
happy you will be and how connected you will feel
with your new friend.
• Lack of (absence) social connection is
associated with a number of diseases and a
shorter life.
Let’s read some extracts from the video and discuss them:
• Disconnectedness and loneliness are widespread.
Many people want more close friends but don’t know
how to get them.
• Surprisingly nowadays loneliness is highest
among young people – whose relationships were
hit especially hard by the global pandemic.
Social distancing stopped teens and young adults
from mingling (mixing) in classrooms, clubs or
dorms.
• Millions of friendships, maybe lifelong
friendships, that might have blossomed will never
exist because of pandemic.
• People make friends with other
people when they spend casual time
together. This is why it is so easy to form
new friendships in school and university.
• The most important principle of
making friends is to regularly spend time
with people in the real world.
• The main reason for a lack of friendships
is the trite fact that most people do
not prioritize friendships nearly enough.
They don’t realize until it is too late,
that retaining friendships demands regular
energy and attention.
• Studies have shown that new friendships
can develop quite quickly, weeks after you
meet someone. But it takes a few months for
a casual friendship to become a close
relationship.
• Another obvious avenue to find a new friend
is your professional life. It helps if you work in
a job that attracts people you like, so you
might consider this when you choose a
career. Deepening your relationship with
colleagues can lead to great friendships,
especially if you look for peers (equal in age)
and there is no power imbalance.
So bring people together by
having a dinner party,
organizing a football game
after work or starting a
board game group.
Everybody appreciates
people who organize fun
things and the simple act of
reaching out can kickstart
a self propelling upward
spiral of well being, fun and
connectedness that can
seriously improve the life of
everyone around you in
meaningful ways.
True Friendship Painting Friendship by Kelvin Osoro