I am aware I have posted about friendships before, but I want to be a little more specific, this time about healthy friendships.
My first friendships as a child were mostly fake. Forced friendships. However, I did have a few real friends. Most of them were guys, I found them more agreeable. Each name will either begin with the first letter of their name or will be assigned a fake name.
C and E: These two were brothers. One was my age and one was a year younger. We all got along pretty well and whenever we see each other again it feels like we pick up where we left off. They are really great guys. I was friends with them between the ages of 5 and 9.
T: She was a really sweet girl. They were not wealthy, but her family gave us hand-me-downs from her. Her mother also babysat us a few times and so we hung out with T a lot. She was older by a couple years, but we always had fun. Friends between 5 and 9. I am out of touch with her now.
S: She was an African-American girl that used to come to our church. She lived in a trailer park near our church. Myself and my sister loved her, she was very sweet. We are out of touch now. Between the ages of 6 and 9.
Then we moved to Texas where we were forced to deal with the reality of popular, unpopular, rich, and poor. This is where I made other friends.
AR: He was very nice, amusing, and we got along pretty well. He was my protector a lot from girls that were mean to me. He made sure that he was near me if he could be. Friends between 10 and 14. We are still in contact off and on.
A: She is my best friend currently. I met her when I was 11 or 12 and we are still friends. I am 22. This is one of the longest friendships I have had. She talked to me when I was waiting for my sister and the rest is history.
H: Her and I became friends when I was around 10 or 11. She had a lot of the same interests as me (sewing, music, etc) so we hit it off. We are still friends, but we aren't as close as we were.
K: When we started going to a new church we became friends with K. She was very nice and accepting of me even though I didn't speak. We became friends because we both liked horses. I met her when I was around 13. I am still in contact with her.
AD: AD was a great girl. She was a little scattered and we weren't really close friends. We were friends because herself and K were best friends. So...it was a "Friends just because...." type of relationship. Which we were both fine with. I am not in contact with her anymore.
EL: He was one of my best friends. We are no longer in contact. I met him when I was around 13 and we lost contact when we were around 16. I had a huge crush on him for a long time. I was heartbroken when we lost contact. (Long convoluted story that involves a church split)
B: We were friends for a few years but I also lost contact with him around the same time as EL.
Then we moved to NY again.
M: She was a lot younger than us. But being home-schooled, age doesn't matter for friendship. She was around 11 year old and I was about 17. We are still in contact off and on. We used to knit and do crafts together. (Or trade)
Then I went to my first college where I met:
MI: MI was a really nice girl, we were in the same ASL class together. Now she moved to Texas, haha. We traded places. But she was my first friend at college.
L: She was my second friend at college and we had every single ASL class together. We also transferred to the same college.
A: She was in a few of the same classes as me and we also transferred together. We aren't close, but we are friends.
M: She was in a couple of my ASL classes but we became fast friends. She is still one of my favorite people to be around. We didn't transfer to the same college, but we're still in touch through facebook.
AL: She was in a few of the classes for our major. I became friends with her as well, again, we aren't close, but we are friends.
At my new college, I have made at least 3 new friends.
N: She is from Africa and was adopted. She was a fast friend and we actually met during Orientation. N is very friendly and is someone I hope to continue a friendship with.
AB: She is a very hyperactive girl who is a fandom person. She loves Doctor Who and Supernatural. She was also home-schooled, which is always fun for me. I love meeting other home-schooled people.
TE: TE is Hard of Hearing and is just learning ASL. I enjoy talking with her and comparing experiences growing up poor. Also listening to her experiences, since she is also an African American. Her experiences with racism and my experience with seeing racism is interesting to compare.
KE: KE is very nice as well, she is fun to be around. I am still getting to know her a little better, but I'm unsure of where our friendship stands at this point.
My first friendships as a child were mostly fake. Forced friendships. However, I did have a few real friends. Most of them were guys, I found them more agreeable. Each name will either begin with the first letter of their name or will be assigned a fake name.
C and E: These two were brothers. One was my age and one was a year younger. We all got along pretty well and whenever we see each other again it feels like we pick up where we left off. They are really great guys. I was friends with them between the ages of 5 and 9.
T: She was a really sweet girl. They were not wealthy, but her family gave us hand-me-downs from her. Her mother also babysat us a few times and so we hung out with T a lot. She was older by a couple years, but we always had fun. Friends between 5 and 9. I am out of touch with her now.
S: She was an African-American girl that used to come to our church. She lived in a trailer park near our church. Myself and my sister loved her, she was very sweet. We are out of touch now. Between the ages of 6 and 9.
Then we moved to Texas where we were forced to deal with the reality of popular, unpopular, rich, and poor. This is where I made other friends.
AR: He was very nice, amusing, and we got along pretty well. He was my protector a lot from girls that were mean to me. He made sure that he was near me if he could be. Friends between 10 and 14. We are still in contact off and on.
A: She is my best friend currently. I met her when I was 11 or 12 and we are still friends. I am 22. This is one of the longest friendships I have had. She talked to me when I was waiting for my sister and the rest is history.
H: Her and I became friends when I was around 10 or 11. She had a lot of the same interests as me (sewing, music, etc) so we hit it off. We are still friends, but we aren't as close as we were.
K: When we started going to a new church we became friends with K. She was very nice and accepting of me even though I didn't speak. We became friends because we both liked horses. I met her when I was around 13. I am still in contact with her.
AD: AD was a great girl. She was a little scattered and we weren't really close friends. We were friends because herself and K were best friends. So...it was a "Friends just because...." type of relationship. Which we were both fine with. I am not in contact with her anymore.
EL: He was one of my best friends. We are no longer in contact. I met him when I was around 13 and we lost contact when we were around 16. I had a huge crush on him for a long time. I was heartbroken when we lost contact. (Long convoluted story that involves a church split)
B: We were friends for a few years but I also lost contact with him around the same time as EL.
Then we moved to NY again.
M: She was a lot younger than us. But being home-schooled, age doesn't matter for friendship. She was around 11 year old and I was about 17. We are still in contact off and on. We used to knit and do crafts together. (Or trade)
Then I went to my first college where I met:
MI: MI was a really nice girl, we were in the same ASL class together. Now she moved to Texas, haha. We traded places. But she was my first friend at college.
L: She was my second friend at college and we had every single ASL class together. We also transferred to the same college.
A: She was in a few of the same classes as me and we also transferred together. We aren't close, but we are friends.
M: She was in a couple of my ASL classes but we became fast friends. She is still one of my favorite people to be around. We didn't transfer to the same college, but we're still in touch through facebook.
AL: She was in a few of the classes for our major. I became friends with her as well, again, we aren't close, but we are friends.
At my new college, I have made at least 3 new friends.
N: She is from Africa and was adopted. She was a fast friend and we actually met during Orientation. N is very friendly and is someone I hope to continue a friendship with.
AB: She is a very hyperactive girl who is a fandom person. She loves Doctor Who and Supernatural. She was also home-schooled, which is always fun for me. I love meeting other home-schooled people.
TE: TE is Hard of Hearing and is just learning ASL. I enjoy talking with her and comparing experiences growing up poor. Also listening to her experiences, since she is also an African American. Her experiences with racism and my experience with seeing racism is interesting to compare.
KE: KE is very nice as well, she is fun to be around. I am still getting to know her a little better, but I'm unsure of where our friendship stands at this point.
