Being a Friend

In today's world of social media where it is not unusual for any given individual to have 1,000 Facebook friends, a LinkedIn network of 500+, a Twitter following of thousands, etc., etc.  so we at Curva-Lish are wondering: Are we losing our ability to determine who is a friend and what it means to be a friend?


We found these definitions of friend on the World English Dictionary Site: a person known well to another and regarding with liking, affection, and loyalty; an intimate; an acquaintance or associate; an ally in a fight or cause; supporter.

So, with that said, you can think of your Facebook friends, LinkedIn acquaintances or associates or Twitter allies/supporters as technically friends based on the definitions above.

However, we weren't satisfied that someone who we call a friend would also have the definition of an acquaintance so we looked deeper.

In the hit book Chicken Soup for the Girlfriend's Soul, the sub-title is called Celebrating the Friends Who Cheer Us Up, Cheer Us On and Make Our Lives Complete.

Wow, that sub-title is a lot different than just someone you like, an acquaintance or association who is a supporter.  The authors seems to go much deeper than that...with a special emphasis on celebrating this person for their loyalty in helping our lives be complete.

Is it possible to play this part in someone's life?  Well, we would be the first to say it is hard to do that if you have over 1,500 friends, acquaintances or associates.

Just in my experience alone, I have had someone who I consider to be a friend be there for me during my mother's death (flying from out of town at the last minute even though I didn't even ask), holding my hand when I had to be brave and make a big life decision, sending a note to a friend for her first day back at a job after having spent 10 years at her job at home raising her kids, or having a wine party with girlfriends to celebrate the fact that one of you got a promotion that was overdue from a thankless job.

Would I call what they did for me or what I did for them that of a friend or that of a person who helps to complete my life?

We guess the difference in viewing people as an English World Dictionary defined friend and what that looks like in real life boils down to whether you can say that friendship completes you and is instrumental in making you who you are (and vice versa)...it's called being a friend.

Curva-Lish Team
curvalish@gmail.com