Ah… that word that is used so lightly. “Friend” is said too easily these days, as if it means nothing. You call a co-worker a friend, a longtime acquaintance, even someone with whom you’ve barely shared a chat. But that’s not friendship. It’s just a casual acquaintance or a circumstantial sympathy.
True friendship is not a given, like family. You don’t choose your family, it’s up to you. But friends are. That’s why they are even more valuable. Because you choose them and they choose you. And, like everything valuable, friendship must be cared for, nurtured, protected… or also, when the time comes, let it go.
A friend is not the one who is alone in good times. It is not the one who laughs at you or accompanies you to a party. A true friend is the one who stays when everything goes wrong. The one who puts up with you when you are unbearable. Who tells you what you don’t want to hear, but does it because he cares about you. Who doesn’t need to be there every day, but is there when it’s really necessary.
To me, friendship is a lot like the loyalty of a dog to its owner. And we all know that there is no loyalty cleaner than that. A dog doesn’t ask for explanations. It doesn’t hold a grudge. It does not demand anything in return for its affection. It follows you, waits for you, takes care of you. Even if you fail him. Even if you don’t measure up. His love is unconditional, and that is what touches us most.
That is the essence of true friendship: to be without conditions, to love without reserve, to accompany without ulterior motives. But not everyone appreciates this. There are those who confuse it with dependence, with habit, or simply take it for granted. And when it is not taken care of, it breaks.
With time, one learns to distinguish. To separate acquaintances from true friends. And, normally, those true friends can be counted on the fingers of one hand… and there are fingers left over. Because it’s not about quantity, but quality. And those that are worth, are worth gold.
Friendship does not stand alone. It requires care, patience, sincerity and respect. But it also requires freedom. Knowing how to be without invading. Knowing how to leave without disappearing. Knowing how to return without reproach.
I don’t need many friends. But the few I have, I take care of them as one takes care of what is priceless. Because I know that, if one day everything falls apart, they will be there. Silently, by my side, like that faithful dog that doesn’t need words to show you that you are not alone.
That, to me, is friendship.
Reflection… What purer friendship is there than that of a dog towards its master?
Good question. And it’s not just rhetorical. If you think about it, few friendships come close to that level of purity.
A dog does not judge you. It doesn’t measure you by what you have, or what you accomplish. He doesn’t expect you to be perfect. He doesn’t hold a grudge if you’re in a bad mood one day. He is, he just is. Cheerful when you’re good, calm when you’re bad, and always ready to accompany you even if he doesn’t fully understand what’s going on with you.
A dog’s friendship needs no words. It doesn’t need explanations. It doesn’t need public demonstrations or likes. It is quiet, daily, constant loyalty. And that, in a world where everything seems to have conditions, clauses and rewards, is extraordinary.
Maybe that’s why it hurts so much to lose a dog. Because we realize that his way of loving us was the most sincere we knew.
HERE ARE SOME SENTENCES THAT SAY IT ALL:
Whoever abandons a dog does not understand what loyalty is.
If you leave your dog behind, what won’t you leave behind?
A person who betrays a dog cannot be a true friend.
Whoever is capable of letting go of his dog… is hiding something.
Friendship is demonstrated in the simplest of ways: if you don’t take care of your dog, you won’t take care of anyone.
If you get separated and stop seeing your dog, the problem is not the distance, it’s the heart.
He who abandons the one who loves him unconditionally, does not know how to love.
If you are not faithful to your dog, who will you be faithful to?
A dog would follow you to the end… not everyone deserves that kind of love.
Whoever does not know what a dog is worth, will hardly know how to value a person.
From MasTorrencito we wish you a good day and may your dogs be with you!!!!
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