Building friendships is hard. This might be a difficult thing to accept in a time when we think that we are more connected than ever, but it has never been more true. We meet a new person, probably online or in person, and we begin to build a connection. Oddly, we expect that this connection is always going to blossom into something long-lasting. Is this realistic or even true?
Social media and the internet often use the terms access and connection interchangeably. By following someone or giving them our contact, we think we have built a connection with them.
On Facebook, we call strangers our “friends” and subconsciously begin to assume that building friendship might be just as easy as sending a friend request. I do not think it is so easy.
A friendship is a meaningful connection between two people. It goes beyond them just being someone you talk to or someone you know from school. There is some level of mutual realisation that you can depend on each other. This trust and connection is what forms the bond of a friendship, and highlights a very important detail:
You cannot be friends with everyone you know.
Ideally, this would seem like a no brainer, but we often do not realise it. The internet makes it easy to meet so many people and even worse, so many people we like. We see these persons and think to ourselves, “I want to be friends with them”.
For some reason, we desire to build meaningful connections with every single person we come across because of the easy access available to us via the internet. However, the truth is that most of these connections will amount to nothing.
Sometimes they don’t just like you the way you like them – they aren’t interested in building the same kind of bond you want with them. Other times, the closer you get to them, the more you realise that they are not quite the kind of person they seemed to be from their profile or timeline.
If we are self-aware enough, we will begin to see reasons why this friendship might not work. Still, pushing the narrative of access and connectivity sold to us by social networks, we strive to make these friendships happen.
Sometimes, these red flags aren’t even there. We find these people and they are everything we thought they would be – sweet, delightful and all round amazing. It all goes smoothly and then we begin to think to ourselves “wow, I’m going to be friends with this person forever”.
That’s another thing. Not all friendships will last forever.
In fact, most won’t. Life happens. Every single person you meet is having a unique life experience that you are mostly oblivious to. These unique experiences will change them in ways that you cannot even imagine. They will come across opportunities that will take them far and wide. They will also meet other people who will change them in unpredictable ways.
Sometimes, you are the one who changes. We don’t like to talk about it from this perspective but sometimes, you are the reason why the friendship doesn’t last. Time passes and you change. This change causes you to drift from these people you have formed connections with.
My point is – it is okay.
Some friendships will last a last time while some will only last a week. That doesn’t make them any less impactful, they just aren’t meant to last too long.
More important is making the most of the time you have with anyone and not letting resentment build up by stretching it further than it needs to go. Sometimes a friendship has run its course and it dies. Let it.
When we expect every friendship we make to turn into a lifelong commitment, we set ourselves up for continuous disappointment.
Ultimately, only a small number of the people we come across in life will become a part of that trusted group of loyal friends that we all hope to have. Sometimes, you’re lucky to meet them early on in life, or you might meet them much later.
What is most important is that you make the most of every connection you have with another person, without trying to force it into something that it isn’t meant to be. Sometimes the fight for something more is worth it, but more often than not, it isn’t.
Your friendships have a life cycle. Let them live, grow and die when they need to.
Lakez
March 11, 2022 at 6:45 am
Very poignant line, access is different from connections. Social media is creating this bias where we think we can be friends with a lot of people just because we happen to have online times that overlap, there is no bigger lie than this. Friendship is much deeper.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:02 am
Indeed! We end up reducing the quality of the friendships we have because we want to have so many.
Kimella
March 11, 2022 at 9:16 am
“You cannot be friends with everyone you know.” Very correct. Social media can give us access to so many people, but it doesn’t guarantee deep connections.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:51 pm
Indeed ?
We mustn’t confuse access with depth
Eseosa Abiodun
March 11, 2022 at 6:05 pm
Exactly! Apparently, nothing lasts forever!
And this applies to everything.
Including Friendship!
We all have to understand and live with that.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:51 pm
I hope we all learn to live with that reality ?
Emmanuella James
March 11, 2022 at 6:06 pm
Love this piece very much
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:52 pm
Thank you ?
Victor Powei Subor
March 21, 2022 at 7:22 am
This was so worth reading. I liked the fact that you spelt out the realities on the topic and also picked out what to focus on, and not holding too tightly and having rigid expectations.
Thank you for writing this, Victory.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 21, 2022 at 7:39 pm
I’m glad you found it worth reading. Thank you for checking it out.
Hamy
March 11, 2022 at 6:18 pm
‘More important is making the most of the time you have with anyone’…. Noiceee
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:51 pm
Thank you for reading ?
Eseosa
March 11, 2022 at 6:19 pm
We all make changes at one point in our lives and I think it affects the friends we have, some friendships make it past the changes, some don’t. That doesn’t make any less valuable.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:53 pm
You surmised it perfectly ?
M.jay
March 11, 2022 at 6:41 pm
This piece is lite
Nice one Vic
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:53 pm
Thank you!
Michael Ayomide
March 11, 2022 at 6:58 pm
This is profound!
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:53 pm
Thanks man! ?
Bilqis Olatinwo
March 11, 2022 at 7:46 pm
So relateable and realistic.Nice piece
Victory Okoyomoh
March 11, 2022 at 7:54 pm
Thank you for reading ?
Osose
March 12, 2022 at 7:04 am
Wow! This speaks so much truth. Great job Victory!
Victory Okoyomoh
March 12, 2022 at 7:31 am
Thank you!
Isaac Idehen Ugiagbe
March 12, 2022 at 7:43 am
I’ve lost friends. People I thought would be there for a long time, or at least till now, but then, life happens. Only validating this article….not all friendships or relationships in general are meant to last forever.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 12, 2022 at 6:55 pm
The beauty of it is, we ultimately will find those who will stay. It always turns out okay ?
Adiel
March 12, 2022 at 7:59 am
Sam Smith once said “…. real love is never a waste of time” . I comfort myself with these words every time a friendship ends. Although I may miss them, but the times we were happy together were never a waste, and so
It is okay.
Thank you for this piece Doctor Wrights?
Victory Okoyomoh
March 12, 2022 at 6:56 pm
Thank you for reading, and sharing these beautiful words ?
Faith
March 12, 2022 at 8:54 am
“You cannot be friends with everyone you know”…
It’s okay to have classmates remain as classmates and the likes..
Wonderful piece.
Victory Okoyomoh
March 12, 2022 at 6:56 pm
Exactly. Everyone should play the roles they are meant to. Thank you for reading ?
Ifeoluwa
June 14, 2022 at 2:29 pm
Thanks for this great piece Victory
Victory Okoyomoh
July 8, 2022 at 9:05 am
Thank you for checking it out ?
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