A Few Good Friends

Becca Bowen

I remember sitting in class the first week of seventh grade looking at this one particular girl. She was pretty, had already started to develop well... you know what I mean, she was talented, and she was popular. I thought about how great it would be to be her friend. Figuring it wouldn't work out very well to walk up and say, Hey, want to be my friend? I didn't. I just watched from the sidelines through jr. high and high school as she gathered lots of attention, dated lots of guys, and got all the lead parts in the school plays. I did make a friend that seventh grade year, though. Her name was Chuc (pronounced Choop). She was from Vietnam and didnt speak English very well. But we became fast friends and throughout jr. high and high school we hung out and had a great time together. We talked about boys, we picked blackberries and made pies, we tried out and got cut from the tennis team, we talked about boys, we went to the ninth grade dance together when nobody else asked us, we did each others hair, and kidnapped each other for surprise birthday parties. She stuck up for me when I was put down, stepped on, ignored, and rejected. I did the same for her.

I recently saw the girl from my seventh grade class on television. She's been on several shows and seems to be making her way in Hollywood. But last weekend, I had dinner with Chuc and our husbands. We laughed and hugged and joked about my braces and her bad English. Twenty-seven years later, I value our friendship more than ever and wouldn't trade it to be friends with the whole cast of "Friends".

As you go back to school and face the pressures of status and popularity and cliques and clashes with your team mates, think about your friends. Consider who would stick up for you and care when things don't go your way. Work things out when you fight with your friends. Be willing to forgive and say you are sorry. Hang on to your true friends. We may not all be popular but we all need a few good friends.