Friends - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
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It is said that when a child is born, there are many agents of socialization and factors that may also influence that child's behavior either positively or negatively and one of these factors is our peers/friends. Notwithstanding, humans in general whether children or adults are also being influenced by their friends in one way or the other that is why one must be very careful when selecting friends because they have a way to make or mar us.
Who is a friend?
According to Concise Oxford English Dictionary(Eleventh Edition), a friend refers to with whom one has a bond of mutual affection, typically one exclusive of sexual or family relations. It can also refer to a person who supports a particular cause or organization.
The Good Friends
We have different kinds of friends but here I will be talking about the good friends. Looking back at our definition, that is the kind of friends we refer to as good friends. These are friends that will always want the best for you, they sacrifice their last just to make sure you have something. Have you ever heard of a statement like "A Friend Turn to Brother"? This is actually the kind of friend I am talking about.
They are friends that adds value to you and when ever you are in a dilemma, he/she is your confidant. These are real friends. If want to continue giving descriptions about the good friends, then this write-up will be too long and boring for my readers. But also remember that good friends will always tell you the truth no matter the situation. There will tell you what is right and wrong even if it will not please you, because they want the best for you, hence, their criticism is always constructive.
The Bad Friends
I use to hear people say, in every good thing, there is always a bad one. I think that is also applicable in the case of friends. Just like we have good friends, we also have bad ones who will influence on one's life is always towards the negative end and sometimes to the end extreme. This are friends that will teach some bad habits which on your own, you never would have learnt those things. Example of the things you may learn from such friends include; smoking, doing drugs, stealing, cultism and so many other despicable behaviors. These friends give you reasons why such habits are cool, and believe me if you are not very strong when it comes to making decisions or if you hold such friends so dear to your heart, you will have not choice than to succumb to their temptations. That all said, lets now proceed to the ugly part of friends.
The Ugly Friends
Before I continue, you must be very careful with those friends that tends to be wolves in sheep clothing. Friends that are nice in your presence and tend to be snakes in your absence. Friends that always want to be benefiting from you. In my language we call them "mara mara n' iru kpompiti n azuu".
When ever you hear someone tell you, be careful so that your friends will not betray or become your downfall, my their readers, these are the ugly friends he is referring to.
The ugly friends will look very supportive, they are always saying good about you even when you know you are wrong. One bad thing about this kind of friends is that they are very calculative as their intentions are well planned and this makes it hard for you decipher what kind of friends they are because they may appear to be real until when their mission is near completion.
My Own Suggestions About Making Friends.
I have observed that most successful people in life don't have a population of friends, but rather, they keep few friends which they can confide in and at the same monitor their relationship with them. Keeping too many friends puts you at a risk of falling victim to green snakes who conceal their identity in green grasses. Hence too many distractions are bound to come your way when such friends begin to strike.
You have to be careful with the friends you keep. Any that does not add value to your existence, please kindly delete. Having a friend is not by force. You may have followers, admirers and so on but once you give them a chance to be very close to you in the name of friends, you put yourself in jeopardy because not everybody that sees you doing well are happy with you. Some wish they are like in a good way but some others wish they will take what you have and be like you so that you be like them.
NOTE: I am writing this article based on my personal experience. I learnt this the hard way and won't want my readers to go through same.
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I love you guys and thanks for always checking my blog.
Let me use this medium to acknowledge some real friends though some might not see this because they refuse to sign up on steemit. They are Sylvester, Echezona, Jonas, @michaelcj, Dangana, Ejike, Godson Chinweuba, @jacobite, Pamela Mgbenwelu, Ebuka Okoye and Oguchienti Chidinma. I love you guys.
May God never bring bad and ugly friends into our lives. To good friends, Cheers!
Amen. We pray for God's direction at the same time we too have to be careful with the people we go out with.
Friends at most times determined what we do and don't do. Although friends are an amazing company to keep.
Like King Solomon of the Bible says, there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother
Friends are amazing set of people to be with, that is if you are with the friends.
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Wow, just another thought that add value to my life today. Thanks for sharing this.
Awww. I am glad this post added value to you. At least you can tell and be able to decipher who your real friends are.