Commentary By Danielle Pelkey

The North Jefferson News



I’ve been doing a lot of thinking the past few weeks about friends.

If you say that someone is your friend, that can hold a lot of different meanings.

I say that my husband is my friend, but I also say that the girl I know at Wal-Mart is my friend.

There is a variety of levels that the word “friend” can hold. I like to think that I am a good friend to others, but I’m sure there are some that would disagree.

I’m not the type of friend that calls you every day just to talk or that stops by the house to check in on you.

Come to think about it, I might be a pretty bad friend. I don’t expect my other friends to call and check on me either.

I know women who have to be in every aspect of each other’s lives and that’s just not how I am. I like to know what’s going on with my girlfriends, but I don’t have to be invited to the movies every time they go.

I was thinking this past week about who my best friend is. Up to this point in my life, I haven’t been concerned with labeling someone as a best friend, and I’m really not that concerned with it now.

Nevertheless, I figured out who my “best friend” is. We don’t talk on the phone. We may go days with out even making contact with each other, but if I need anything, I know that I can call her and she would be there for me. I hope that she knows the same of me.

A real friend is the person that will be beside you through thick and thin. I’ve had my fair share of friends that were surface friends, but now I’m older and I love deeper.

My mom says that I’m one of the deepest loving people that she knows, and the more I think about it the more I see that truth. When I love you, I love you with my whole heart, whether we just work together or if we are good friends.

I think that’s why I don’t have a whole lot of “best friends.” I try to be friendly to everyone, but I only let a select few people into my intimate circle of true friendship.

My mom can befriend a fence post if she wanted to. She has that open friendship type of personality, but I am much more reserved with my friendships.

We should all try to follow the guidelines set by the Bible in Proverbs 18:24: “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.”

I like to think that I am a friendly person, but I know that I have my bad days.

The bottom line is that a friend doesn’t have to be someone that you are in constant contact with, but they do have to be someone that you can rely on. A friendship consists of giving and taking, and like any other relationship, the more you give, the better it is.

Danielle Pelkey is the office and classified manager for The North Jefferson News. She can be reached at 631-8716 or daniellet@njeffersonnews.com.