my little insite on friends
well, i had to write an essay for my english class a week or so ago.. and i very oddly decided to write about the types of friends.. and apparently it ended up quite amusing.. so i thought i'd post it to amuse those of you who felt like reading it ><'
Being a relatively worldly and knowledgeable 15 year old, I have had both the pleasure of seeing friends come, and the dismay of watching them go. During the first few years after my family immigrated to Canada, it was difficult to find affordable and comfortable housing right away. As a result, we moved every year, trying to improve our standard of living. Those years were also my first few years of elementary school, and the first time that I ran into the evils of friendship . Understanding little English, I had to depend on someone who spoke Cantonese to help me through school, and I counted on the wrong person. As my family and I settled down after moving every year for four years, I began to get to know the people that served as my make-shift friends, and they weren’t that terrible after all. But just as I began to understand everyone’s differences, the first year of high school began. Even the closest of friends slowly began to drift apart, working toward their individual goals. During this dark hour, I met a new friend, and I met an old friend; friends that will never be forgotten. Friends are easily categorized as: the Manipulative Prick, the Summer Fling, and the True Blue Soul.
Even the best judges of character have had friends like these, and perhaps it was because of these friends that they became such good judges of character. To introduce the attitudes of these types of friends, let us analyze their reactions to the following situation:
It is 4 o’clock in the morning before your year-end report is due. It is worth 30% of your final mark, and you have finally adding the last touches and are satisfied with it. You proceed to print out your now-perfect report when your printer suddenly jams, starts printing gibberish and spurts globs of ink everywhere. While inwardly cursing about the unreliability of technology, you post an all-round call for help on your display name on instant messenger.
The reaction of the Manipulative Prick -- our first specimen -- would be: “Hey! I know this person, what was his/her name again?” They must be able to take advantage of every friend they have, otherwise, they feel as though they are deprived of something. If they are ever seen in the halls, there is no point in greeting them, because they wouldn’t see you; unless of course, they needed to borrow your notes or homework, or they spent their lunch money on something that wasn’t lunch and is now in need of cash, or any other such favors. However, if this situation happen to be reversed, don’t expect the Manipulative Prick to be of help; in fact, chances are, they will probably make up the most absurd excuses possible to avoid having to help. If he or she happens to see you on the street with someone they see as a possible love interest, they will start chatting with you in a heartbeat. In spite of that, after a busy summer, they will not even remember names of people they call ‘friends’. The Manipulative Prick of a friend makes friends for a reason, and it’s not for companionship.
Although the sky in the world of friendship is darkened by the Manipulative Prick, the Sun is still manages to peek through the dark clouds. The Summer Fling is not quite as scheming as the Manipulative Prick. In the same situation, these friends would actually remember your name; however they would not necessarily help out. The Summer Fling’s first reaction would be: “Oh he/she’ll find a way out of it without my help. If she asks I’ll just say I left my computer on while I slept.” These people make friends purely to fit into a group and to be included in any social gatherings; and only with people they do not see as threats to their status in society. In the halls he or she will probably wave, offer a smile, and maybe even exchange some meaningfully mindless conversation, such as: “Wow, I’m so tired! Aren’t you sleepy?” or, “It’s so cold today! I’m freezing!” After school, the Summer Fling will stand around in his/her little circle of ‘friends’ and chatter on and on about other such pointless topics. During the summer holidays, they will have their separate agendas, and so all recollection of their friends will simply dissipate from their memory. Nevertheless, if they happen to bump into a ‘friend’ during the summer, they will politely ask how their summer has been, then say they are in a hurry and scurry off. These friends are passer-bys in the journey of life; from time to time, memories of them will come up, but these memories will only ever have a place in the very back of one’s mind. Although they somewhat fit the Oxford Dictionary’s description of a friend, “person, not a relation, whom one knows and likes well”, they are not the ‘ideal’ friend most people have in mind.
“Friends are like the stars and planets, you don’t always see them, but they are always there for us.” This is a quote taken from the friends’ pages of Dr. Norman Bethune C.I.’s 2003-2004 yearbook. The keyword, ‘always’, is what sets these friends apart from the previous specimen. When placed in the same situation as the first two varieties of friends, the True Blue Soul would message you instantly to see what they could do to possibly help; even if he or she saw the distress signal on the way to the toilet for a midnight bathroom break. The True Blue Souls usually have the same values and beliefs, yet they possess practically opposite personalities; as a result, it becomes next to impossible for disagreement and jealousies. They don’t build friendship; they simply grow into it like mold grows on expired foods. In fact, a friendship with a True Blue Soul may have started with an intelligent discussion over a common interest. After that, it doesn’t seem to matter how long it has been since the first meeting. They are next to bouncing off walls during encounters in the hall, and will excitedly report everything that happened since the last meeting, down to the last detail. After school, they would happily wander the neighborhood with their friend, exchanging thoughts on an infinite amount of random topics, rapidly relating anything they can think of; all the while managing to finish 80 percent of each other’s sentences (or, finishing each other’s sentences when the other is out of breath). In the event of one friend transferring to another school; the other will spend at least five minutes every morning, and many more throughout the day, ranting about anything they could think of to prevent the transfer, some more impossible than others, and the unfairness of it all. When the tragedy finally occurs, the planning of outings during every common holiday commences. Should any planned outings happen to clash with the plans of either party’s parents; a Plan B will immediately be in effect. Consequently, if one happens to run into the other during an outing with ‘other’ friends that might include the Manipulative Prick and/or the Summer Fling varieties, the term ‘ditch’ will be used to describe what happens next. These are friends that are forever etched in one’s memory, because the True Blue Soul will always be around; and, are of the variety that people refer to as ‘friends for life’.
People meet many types friends in their lifetimes, most of which will fit into one of three categories. There are the Manipulative Pricks, who remain on good terms with friends only for possible benefits they may receive. There are Summer Flings, who make friends with people only to ensure themselves a place in society. Then there are the True Blue Souls, who literally click with their friends, despite opposing personalities, which give their relationships a twist to keep things interesting. It is entirely likely that many people go through their whole lives not knowing the existence of the latter of these three types of friends. To have been fortunate enough to have found two of them in the past two years was a blessing on its own. One was of the Summer Fling sort until discussions on several important matters commenced; the other came into being after realizing our common interest in a specific author. Without them, going through my first years of high school would have been impossible; without them, writing this essay would have been impossible; without them, the rest of my life would be impossible.
Being a relatively worldly and knowledgeable 15 year old, I have had both the pleasure of seeing friends come, and the dismay of watching them go. During the first few years after my family immigrated to Canada, it was difficult to find affordable and comfortable housing right away. As a result, we moved every year, trying to improve our standard of living. Those years were also my first few years of elementary school, and the first time that I ran into the evils of friendship . Understanding little English, I had to depend on someone who spoke Cantonese to help me through school, and I counted on the wrong person. As my family and I settled down after moving every year for four years, I began to get to know the people that served as my make-shift friends, and they weren’t that terrible after all. But just as I began to understand everyone’s differences, the first year of high school began. Even the closest of friends slowly began to drift apart, working toward their individual goals. During this dark hour, I met a new friend, and I met an old friend; friends that will never be forgotten. Friends are easily categorized as: the Manipulative Prick, the Summer Fling, and the True Blue Soul.
Even the best judges of character have had friends like these, and perhaps it was because of these friends that they became such good judges of character. To introduce the attitudes of these types of friends, let us analyze their reactions to the following situation:
It is 4 o’clock in the morning before your year-end report is due. It is worth 30% of your final mark, and you have finally adding the last touches and are satisfied with it. You proceed to print out your now-perfect report when your printer suddenly jams, starts printing gibberish and spurts globs of ink everywhere. While inwardly cursing about the unreliability of technology, you post an all-round call for help on your display name on instant messenger.
The reaction of the Manipulative Prick -- our first specimen -- would be: “Hey! I know this person, what was his/her name again?” They must be able to take advantage of every friend they have, otherwise, they feel as though they are deprived of something. If they are ever seen in the halls, there is no point in greeting them, because they wouldn’t see you; unless of course, they needed to borrow your notes or homework, or they spent their lunch money on something that wasn’t lunch and is now in need of cash, or any other such favors. However, if this situation happen to be reversed, don’t expect the Manipulative Prick to be of help; in fact, chances are, they will probably make up the most absurd excuses possible to avoid having to help. If he or she happens to see you on the street with someone they see as a possible love interest, they will start chatting with you in a heartbeat. In spite of that, after a busy summer, they will not even remember names of people they call ‘friends’. The Manipulative Prick of a friend makes friends for a reason, and it’s not for companionship.
Although the sky in the world of friendship is darkened by the Manipulative Prick, the Sun is still manages to peek through the dark clouds. The Summer Fling is not quite as scheming as the Manipulative Prick. In the same situation, these friends would actually remember your name; however they would not necessarily help out. The Summer Fling’s first reaction would be: “Oh he/she’ll find a way out of it without my help. If she asks I’ll just say I left my computer on while I slept.” These people make friends purely to fit into a group and to be included in any social gatherings; and only with people they do not see as threats to their status in society. In the halls he or she will probably wave, offer a smile, and maybe even exchange some meaningfully mindless conversation, such as: “Wow, I’m so tired! Aren’t you sleepy?” or, “It’s so cold today! I’m freezing!” After school, the Summer Fling will stand around in his/her little circle of ‘friends’ and chatter on and on about other such pointless topics. During the summer holidays, they will have their separate agendas, and so all recollection of their friends will simply dissipate from their memory. Nevertheless, if they happen to bump into a ‘friend’ during the summer, they will politely ask how their summer has been, then say they are in a hurry and scurry off. These friends are passer-bys in the journey of life; from time to time, memories of them will come up, but these memories will only ever have a place in the very back of one’s mind. Although they somewhat fit the Oxford Dictionary’s description of a friend, “person, not a relation, whom one knows and likes well”, they are not the ‘ideal’ friend most people have in mind.
“Friends are like the stars and planets, you don’t always see them, but they are always there for us.” This is a quote taken from the friends’ pages of Dr. Norman Bethune C.I.’s 2003-2004 yearbook. The keyword, ‘always’, is what sets these friends apart from the previous specimen. When placed in the same situation as the first two varieties of friends, the True Blue Soul would message you instantly to see what they could do to possibly help; even if he or she saw the distress signal on the way to the toilet for a midnight bathroom break. The True Blue Souls usually have the same values and beliefs, yet they possess practically opposite personalities; as a result, it becomes next to impossible for disagreement and jealousies. They don’t build friendship; they simply grow into it like mold grows on expired foods. In fact, a friendship with a True Blue Soul may have started with an intelligent discussion over a common interest. After that, it doesn’t seem to matter how long it has been since the first meeting. They are next to bouncing off walls during encounters in the hall, and will excitedly report everything that happened since the last meeting, down to the last detail. After school, they would happily wander the neighborhood with their friend, exchanging thoughts on an infinite amount of random topics, rapidly relating anything they can think of; all the while managing to finish 80 percent of each other’s sentences (or, finishing each other’s sentences when the other is out of breath). In the event of one friend transferring to another school; the other will spend at least five minutes every morning, and many more throughout the day, ranting about anything they could think of to prevent the transfer, some more impossible than others, and the unfairness of it all. When the tragedy finally occurs, the planning of outings during every common holiday commences. Should any planned outings happen to clash with the plans of either party’s parents; a Plan B will immediately be in effect. Consequently, if one happens to run into the other during an outing with ‘other’ friends that might include the Manipulative Prick and/or the Summer Fling varieties, the term ‘ditch’ will be used to describe what happens next. These are friends that are forever etched in one’s memory, because the True Blue Soul will always be around; and, are of the variety that people refer to as ‘friends for life’.
People meet many types friends in their lifetimes, most of which will fit into one of three categories. There are the Manipulative Pricks, who remain on good terms with friends only for possible benefits they may receive. There are Summer Flings, who make friends with people only to ensure themselves a place in society. Then there are the True Blue Souls, who literally click with their friends, despite opposing personalities, which give their relationships a twist to keep things interesting. It is entirely likely that many people go through their whole lives not knowing the existence of the latter of these three types of friends. To have been fortunate enough to have found two of them in the past two years was a blessing on its own. One was of the Summer Fling sort until discussions on several important matters commenced; the other came into being after realizing our common interest in a specific author. Without them, going through my first years of high school would have been impossible; without them, writing this essay would have been impossible; without them, the rest of my life would be impossible.