Friendship

Who would have thought this ridiculous rumor would spread so far? When you first heard about it, you laughed. Never did you think that people would take it seriously. Now everyone thinks that you’re the one who ratted out the party. Parties are history for you now; nobody is going to want you at them anymore. The worst part isn’t even that though; now the whole school basically hates you. This is including the people that you thought were going to be there for you through thick and thin; your friends. Turns out, they weren’t as great of friends as you thought considering they turned on you due to gossip that is going around. School can be extremely challenging, especially when you have basically no friends. Without someone by your side to help you through the difficulties of school, more complications seem to appear. With a true friend by your side to help you along the way, nothing can stop you guys and ultimately things become much simpler.

In the novel “Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson, a teenage girl named Melinda is just about to enter high school. However, there is one major difference between her the whole rest of the student body; she has not one friend. Whatever people Melinda thought were her true friends, definitely weren’t. A true friend is a person who you feel comfortable talking about anything with, a person who will support you even when it hurts his or her own interest, a person who is there whenever they are needed whether it’s three in the morning or 10 in the evening. These are distinct features of a true friend. After looking back, Melinda’s friends really didn’t have any of these characteristics. Because of that, Melinda had to face numerous challenges alone which is awful. Maybe if she had someone she could trust by her side through these hard times, she wouldn’t have had so many faults or gotten into so much trouble.

In the end, things always seem to go much more smoothly if you have a true friend by your side. There are no worries about them leaving you due to absurd gossip, or no body being there when you need them most. A true friend is someone you can trust no matter what. Through thick and thin they will always be there. “Hold a true friend with both of your hands,” – Nigerian Proverb.