Let's talk about best friends. 💛 Bear with me regarding this concept because I am all about friendship 👬👫👭 in general and female friendship 👭 in particular. Let me tweak this idea a little. The idea of having just one single best friend is a little overrated. It needs a bit of a revamp, I think. We need to think on a wider scale. Think about the concept of BFFs as it existed when you were little and the pressure to have ONE TRUE BEST FRIEND was enormous and crushing. Think about the petty little fights you had, think about ripping off your BFF necklace 💔 and giving it to someone else, think about how many times the cycle repeated itself. Now, read this with an open mind and tell me what you think.
“Best friend” is just a phrase that, honestly, you can tack onto anyone who gets you, supports you, or makes you laugh – think about how many people you describe as your best friend.
You're not in grade school any longer, so there aren't a bunch of girls trying to dictate the rules of best friendship, meaning that you don't have to limit yourself to just one.
The more friends you are, the more support you have – and if you have more best friends, then there's more love to go around.
No single person can give you everything you need all the time, and it's actually unfair to expect that, which is why it's not just fine to have more than one best friend, it's practically essential.
You need a friend for different facets of your life – a work bestie, a school bestie, a wingwoman bestie, and so on.
If you have one designated BFF, did you ever stop to think that they might be under pressure to fulfill all of your friendship needs?
By expecting a single person to fulfill all your needs as a friend, you're selling yourself short and losing out on so many potentially valuable relationships.
Even as adults, it can be hurtful to hear a friend you really love refer to someone else as their best friend because, even if it's not the intent, it almost seems like that friend is saying you're not good enough.
Meaning, they're more than just the labels we put on them.
I don't mean the individual changes, although that's certainly true, I mean that if you look back on it, you'll likely notice that you've had a new best friend at different junctures in your life.
It sucks to say, but holding onto the idea of a single best friend can inhibit your personal growth, especially if you're only holding on because you've “been best friends for so long.”
What if you have a falling out and you're then left with no support system, simply because you're clinging to the idea that you can only have one single super best friend?
That is, your current best friend may resent or dislike other close friends – and you might feel the same if your best friend has other close friends.
You need a diverse group of friends, not just to increase your support system or fulfill other aspects of your life, but because doing so opens your eyes and helps you to gain more perspective.
You need the friend who listens well when you're going through a hard time, the friend who parties when you need a distraction, and the friend who comforts when you need someone to hold you.
This isn't a romantic relationship so there's no reason to be “faithful” to a single friend.
The thing is, when you have a best friend, you can get complacent and decide there's no more room in your life for additional friends … and that's kind of sad.
What do you think, stalkers? Agree, disagree, need to debate the topic?
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