The principal duty of friendship is merely presence.
"...According to an American Perspectives Survey, between 1990 and 2021, the percentage of Americans reporting that they had no close friends at all quadrupled. For men, the number had risen to 15 percent. Almost half of all Americans surveyed reported having three close friends or fewer... Ever since I’ve started thinking and writing about America’s loss of belonging, I’ve been asking people what virtue they value most in a friend. I’ve asked people who are religious and secular, white-collar and blue-collar, men and women, Black and white. And it’s remarkable how often the answer boils down to the single virtue I mentioned above, of presence, of being there..."
David French
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/24/opinion/friendship-loneliness.html?smid=em-share
I don't remember where I heard it - maybe in a scene in a movie or maybe in this class somewhere, but this reminds me of a song I heard recently. I honestly don't remember anything about the song except for the line "but you just need someone to say, I hear you dude". I can say from at least my own personal experience, this is often the quality that I look for in a friend. I just want someone to acknowledge me. This can be acknowledgment of my presence, my struggle, my joy, my strengths, my weakness, or any or all of the above. Just having someone who validates you - to help you feel real, is all it takes sometimes. Sometimes, I get too wrapped up in myself and I have to remind myself to be there for others like I want them to be for me, and I'm sure that's a struggle that many people can relate to. We're all very busy trying to be, and that's okay, but we also need to be there for others. It makes it all real.
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