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What Are Friends Really For?
Life is a balancing act. This applies to everything, especially when choosing who we share our lives with.
Our innermost thoughts are sacred to us, but we cannot burden ourselves with them alone. We are social by nature, and having people we trust around us helps us share these burdens.
Some share, with everyone, things which should only be shared with friends. Some are reluctant to share these things with even their closest friends.
We should aim to be neither of these people, for trusting everyone is as much a fault as trusting no one.
This logic can be applied to all walks of life. Those who are in a constant state of relaxation merit disapproval, just as those in a constant state of busyness. Each end of the spectrum is as bad as the other.
“Some men have shrunk so far into dark corners that objects in bright daylight seem quite blurred to them” — Pomponius
Those extreme ends are the dark corners. People who share with everyone will not see the merits of a truly close friend when any ear will do. Whereas those who don’t share at all will shudder at the idea of pouring their soul out to…
