So far, I would say that I have made twenty-six really solid friends. These are people who I have and would still call my best friends. For 99% of them, seeing them again is just a case of continuing where we left off. For each and every one of them, I have a memory which carries a strong emotional weight. These are memories which will stick with me forever and they’re all attached to people I’ll always care deeply for. Here are some of the most intimate moments I’ve shared with people in my life so far;
- Having my friend message others that they perceived had let me down and tell them that they needed to work harder for my friendship.
- Having my friend spring to my defense the moment somebody else started to ask inappropriate questions which could cause me anxiety.
- Having a heart to heart talk about the difficulties faced by sexual minorities over a drink in a pub.
- Having a friend who seemed to understand me so easily and who always makes time when asked to this day.
- Sharing phone calls even when we saw each other in person, just to get the chance to chat some more.
- Reminiscing on years of friendship over a lovely one on one dinner.
- Being told that I was one of very few friends who my friend thought that they could truly trust.
- Having my friend check up on me in some capacity every single day to make sure I was okay following the death of a family member.
- Visiting a friend, sleeping over, watching films and chatting late my friend into the night.
- Having my friend moved to tears because there are “good people [like me] in the world.”
- Spending a weekend traveling to and exploring London together.
- Sharing a deep discussion about life and our feelings while wandering down a silent country road at 4am.
- Visiting my friend almost every single evening, to have long talks about all manner of subjects for hours until it got late.
- Having my friend stand up for me and defend me from people trying to push me to drink alcohol.
- Sharing a giggly and tipsy night wandering the streets of Bath together.
- Visiting a wonderfully Christmassy place and being told that my positivity always makes things more enjoyable for them.
- Walking hand in hand through the woods and sharing a deep conversation about our significance to one another.
- Sharing a special Christmassy day together – exchanging presents by a crackling fire and taking a stroll through the countryside.
- Visiting a friend and discussing life, future and careers over a delicious pizza.
- Having a friend who would try to provide practical help for literally every aspect of life.
- Making a surprise visit to my friend for their birthday and being delighted by their very positive response to seeing me.
- Discussing the value (and rarity) of true friendship and deciding that that was exactly what we shared.
- Being moved to tears myself in response to the positive support provided by my friend.
- Having my friend sincerely warn me against things they feared might harm me in my naivety.
- Sharing a heart to heart over a well kept secret from the past.
- A level headed friend who never fails to express a level of care and concern through a firm handed rationality.
Looking over that list, some of those memories are an impression based on the culmination of many smaller interactions, whereas others are very clearly specific events. Sometimes it was hard to narrow it down to a single experience and I think that’s fine. It was a really heartwarming writing task to look back at all these lovely little experiences. There’s something wonderful for every person and I am lucky to have met so many fantastic people.