Here’s Why You Should Be Grateful For Every Friendship In Your Life (Even The Ones That Hurt You)

There are many different kinds of friends you’ll make throughout your life. Each type of friend will ultimately teach you something about yourself and help you grow into the individual you want to become. Each friendship will inspire you, hurt you and teach you in some way. You should be grateful for each type of friend you meet in your life, even if they hurt you or betrayed you, because they ultimately taught you more about yourself and about the harsh realities of life.

Here are the different kinds of friends you will make throughout your life:

There are the friends who you adore, but don’t get to see as much as you’d like because of college or work or just life being life. There are the friends who you wish you stayed connected to from elementary school and high school, but who have just become faces you see on Instagram.

There are the friends who you go to dinner with and drink glasses and glasses of wine with and just enjoy each others’ presence and the happiness they bring to your soul. There are the friends who you get ready for parties with and spend some of your blurriest nights dancing with.

There are the friends who show up for you in the darkest of times. These friends surprise you, because even though they may not be your closest friends, they are usually the best intentioned ones. They are the ones who pick you back up after you fall or experience something heartbreaking.

There are the friends who you think are just like you, the friends who may eagerly call your best friend after a few weeks of meeting them, but in actuality, they end up being jealous and manipulative individuals. You will be going on and on about how wonderful they are, yet anyone else that has met them through you is shocked that you are fond of this person. This type of friend will cause you to question yourself, making you wonder how you missed the mark on who they truly are for so long. (That is okay and is because you want to see the best in each person.)

There are the friends who come into your life merely to teach you to not let your guard down too easily. There are the friends who break your heart. The friends who you put all of your trust in that end up backstabbing you, making you question what you did to deserve this type of betrayal. These friends are probably the hardest friendships to close the door on and will often make you less trustworthy of other friends, but don’t let it. Do not let a few insecure people allow you to change the free and loving nature that radiates off of you. Allow this type of friend to teach you the reality of the world—that people are not always what they seem to be and that is okay. They will find new friends and so will you. All you can do is wish them the best and move on.

There are the friends who you don’t initially see becoming your friend. They are not your typical type of friend, yet they become some of the closest people to your heart. There are the friends who have been there through every up and down in your life and hold some of your deepest secrets.

And then there are the friends who are family. The friends that can spend all weekend in your room just talking and planning out your future’s with. The friends you can spend 24 hours a day on the phone with talking about literally nothing. The friends you can see seven days a week without getting tired of. The friends you cannot imagine life without. The friends who know you inside and out and truly want the best for you with every fiber of their bodies.

Each of these friends will shape the person you evolve into. Each of these friends will push you to attract the type of friend you want to experience the many joys and hardships of life with. Each of these relationships will show you exactly what you want in a friendship and precisely what you do not. Each of these friends are absolutely necessary and crucial in your life. Even the ones who break your heart and force you to stop thinking that everyone has the same intentions for you that you have for them. Each of these friends will guide you to the type of friends that are destined to be a permanent part of your journey.

So, do not shut the door to meeting new people—no matter what. No matter how many hurtful or negative experiences you may have had with past friendships. Those painful friendships and the hurt you have endured from these people will only benefit your friendships in the future and how you choose the timing of trusting people. It is okay to take it slow. It is okay to not be an open book the first few months of becoming friends with someone. It is healthy to create boundaries that will allow you the freedom to appreciate the friendship in each stage and form it takes.

You come first. This is something that you will learn for yourself after experiencing some of these friendships throughout life. Allow each person you meet to change your life, even in the slightest of ways. Be open to new experiences and new memories with someone who may seem like they will not play a significant role in your life when you first meet. Allow friendships to form and connections to be made whenever and wherever you can. Most importantly, do not allow those friends who have disappointed you to take away the beautiful energy you give off just because you are afraid of being hurt in the future. Continue to shine your light and the friends who are meant to stay in your life, will stay and will appreciate all of the light you have to share.