Episode 6: Friendship

First, there are acquaintances. These are the people you
meet day in and day out, perhaps the teller at the bank window or
perhaps the grocery store clerk. These are people you run into.
In one year’s time, you’ll probably make anywhere from 500 to
2,500 acquaintances. Most of these relationships are superficial.
They will never go any deeper.


Second, there are casual friends. These are people you know
on a first-name basis. A conversation with these people, whether
at church or at work, involves superficial issues such as the
stock market, politics, sports game, children, and so forth. Some
of these casual friendships may only last a few months. Some may
span a lifetime.


Third, there are close friends. Depending upon your social
network, your close friends can number anywhere from five to
twenty-five people. These are people who are neighbors, church
members, work associates. And usually these relationships are
characterized by a mutual agreement on many of the basic issues
of life.


And then fourth, there are intimate friends. Usually, no one
has more than six intimate friends in a lifetime. These are
people with whom we can share our deepest feelings, the people
with whom we can be most open. These are the people we call at a
time of crisis in our life. And although the nature of these
friendships can change over time, usually they will endure a
lifetime regardless of geographical location. These are people,
maybe you won’t see for a few years but as soon as you get back
together with them it’s just like you’re picking up where you
left off. These are intimate friends.