I’ve written that too many people have too many “friends.”  We live in a society in which we want to classify everyone that we’ve met as either ‘friend’ or ‘enemy.’  Why is it so disturbing to think that there are so many individuals that fall into neither classification?  I have no friends.  Friendship to me implies a certain level of reciprocal care and attachment that I confer upon no one.  What do you consider a friend to be?  Is it someone that will look out for your best interests no matter whether theirs are honored?  Is it someone that shows a level of attachment and empathy that goes above and beyond most?  How do you draw the line?

Do not misunderstand me.  I prefer to surround myself with the company of others rather than to be left alone in a damnable vacuum.  However, I do not consider these individuals to be friends.  I do not surround myself with enemies, so what does that leave?  The astute reader will note that I often use the word ‘acquaintance.’  I surround myself with acquaintances.  The word is a beautiful one.  It implies a level of agreeability but not companionship as well as a level of familiarity but does not indicate a reciprocity that smothers either individual.  Why are people so loathe to embrace such a designation?  Are we so pompous that we expect to be so important in another’s life by the requirements friendship places?  Are we terrified of being alone on some level?  Why do we insist that we classify others into such rigid groupings?  I cannot answer this question, only the reader can.

Maybe the word ‘acquaintance’ is cold.  Maybe it is discomforting to realize that only the casual grasp of fate glues together the interpersonal relationship at hand.  I’m fine with such.  I do not lose sleep knowing that my importance to another is as limited as their importance to me.  My interpersonal relationships are transient.  I leave the designation of ‘enemy’ to those that truly deserve it and the same can be said for ‘friends’.  Maybe one day I’ll find someone worthy of being called a friend.  Maybe I won’t.  I encourage my readers to take the same stringent stance that I do.  Elevate those that deserve it rather than everyone you’ve ever met that is not an enemy.